Even President Biden has no time for the divisive Harry and Meghan
Once high-flying, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle seem to be in a downward spiral, sustaining blow after blow in a summer that has emerged to be a washout. At risk of schadenfreude, it couldn’t happen to a nicer couple. While I would never wish it personally, things are so stressed, rumors have even been flying that their marital union could be imperiled.
Once viewed as darlings of the media and the Hollywood scene, it seems now even Sleepy Joe Biden has distanced himself from the controversial couple. Hollywood elites, such as Taylor Swift, are putting space between themselves and the former toasts of the town.
So too, the Sussexes have been dropped from prominent guest lists, including the LA party celebrating the British Academy Film Awards, whose organizers feared a "PR disaster" if they attended.
The Sussexes have been dropped from prominent guest lists, including the LA party celebrating the British Academy Film Awards. (Getty Images)
If true, reports released last week that the couple’s request was denied to fly back with the Bidens on Air Force One from Queen Elizabeth’s funeral must have stung painfully. With Meghan’s ambitions to one day make a splash in Democratic politics, that alleged episode would have cruelly denied a priceless photo op of her and Harry climbing the steps of Air Force One.
Then there were the couple’s streaming catastrophes. Three years ago, with a fanfare of media attention and significant financial deals with streaming giants in hand, the former royals ditched their crowns, hellbent to transform themselves into Hollywood power players.
However, as time passed, studio execs noted a lack of talent, disappointing work ethic, and the realization that the only interest they held for the public was their relationship to Harry’s family – a family that they have taken every opportunity to malign and betray.
United Talent Agency CEO Jeremy Zimmer summed up the situation in a mid-June interview: "Meghan Markle was not a great audio talent, or necessarily any kind of talent…. Just because you're famous doesn't make you great at something."
One after another, their projects have been crashing in stunning succession.
With the canceling of the Sussexes’ Spotify deal last month, speculation has arisen over the future of their once-promising media empire, as well as concern over how the couple's choices and behavior have impacted their brand's sustainability. The end of the Spotify partnership marks another abrupt conclusion to a major project, leading some to wonder if this could be the beginning of the end for the Sussexes.
"Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together," read the terminal message released jointly by the couple and Spotify.
Could this possibly be because they have spilled all the royal tea they had in their pot, with nothing left? After all, with the chilly relations due to the duo’s appalling behavior and disrespect to Harry’s family, their connection to the only thing that makes Harry and Meghan interesting has evaporated.
Spectacularly, Spotify executive Bill Thomas pulled no punches when he referred to the duo as "f---ing grifters" after they delivered just 13 hours of programming in two and half years.
The numerous projects they embarked upon under Archewell, struggled to see the light of day. An ambitious project focused on tackling misinformation became one of many casualties. Among their unrealized ventures is a canceled animated children's show called "Pearl" and several rejected TV ideas.
Despite the initial success of the "Harry & Meghan" Netflix series, their overall output has been modest at best. Netflix executives have expressed disappointment with the lack of productivity from the couple's deal.
Unsurprisingly, the couple's attempts to find a niche beyond their royal past proved challenging. No longer holding the status of working royals, media executives note they generate very little content compelling enough to maintain audience attention. Moreover, it doesn't look like they’ll ever be able to generate any new content of the royal variety considering the Royals have closed ranks and sensibly frozen them out after Harry cruelly violated their privacy in his ghostwritten autobiography, "Spare."
As they move forward, the once-shiny glow of Harry and Meghan's star power is slowly dimming. Revelations from their projects have seemingly deepened the rift between Harry and his family, further distancing them from the crown and reducing their show-business appeal.
Harry and Meghan, who once were treated with dignity and respect because of the roles they abandoned, have made themselves the targets of stand-up comedian’s jokes and cartoon parodies. What a pity, considering the hope and goodwill they squandered when they were warmly welcomed by a British people who had high hopes for the success of a very modern romance within their 1,000-year royal institution.
The world was their oyster, but narcissism, greed, victimhood and entitlement have derailed what could have been a fairytale existence. As the Bible says, "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."
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Lee Cohen, a senior fellow of the Bow Group and the Bruges Group, was adviser on Great Britain to the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee and founded the Congressional United Kingdom Caucus.
