While the Duchess of Sussex’s spokesperson has not commented on the claims, sources close to her said that she is planning on focusing on her lifestyle brand, As Ever, and going bigger on her socials. It came months after Netflix downgraded the Sussexes’ lucrative deal to a ‘first-look’ one.
Some royal watchers claimed that Netflix’s decision to pull the plug was a major sign of how well the Duchess’s entrepreneurial efforts are perceived in Hollywood.
Royal commentator Hilary Fordwich told Fox News: “Really, this isn’t all that surprising from a business perspective. There was never a USP — a unique selling proposition.
“The only differentiator Meghan Markle had in this crowded lifestyle space was marrying a prince. She never earned audience trust. In this space, authenticity and relatability are critical.”
Ms Fordwich added: “The highly curated rental mansion was one of a plethora of silly mistakes, followed by so many cringe-worthy, inauthentic moments lambasted universally. It was deemed neither entertaining nor informative and less than inspiring. It was nothing more than an overhyped celebrity venture.”
Meanwhile, royal expert Helena Chard was of a similar opinion.
She said: “Critics described the show as ‘bland’ and ‘stale.’ The phrase ‘as exciting as watching paint dry’ springs to mind. Meghan attributed the cancellation to the show being ‘a lot of work,’ but insiders believe it was due to dismal ratings. Recent data indicates poor viewership.”
The second series of the Duchess of Sussex’s Netflix show failed to crack the top 1,000 most-watched programmes on the platform, according to figures.
It was the 1,124th-most-watched show between July and December 2025, with 2 million views, according to data released by the platform.
The second series was savaged by critics and described as “so boring, so contrived, so effortfully whimsical… it does become almost fascinating” when it was released in August. The episodes featured guests including singer John Legend and his wife Chrissy Teigen, and Queer Eye star Tan France.
The festive special of the programme – With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration – also failed to crack the top 1,000 and landed at 1,022 on the list of most-watched shows, with 2.4 million views.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.express.co.uk ’
