The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are also working on a scripted television series and a film adaptation as part of their $100m deal. Photo / Getty Images
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are also working on a scripted television series and a film adaptation as part of their $100m deal. Photo / Getty Images
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are working on multiple documentaries as well as a scripted television series and a film adaptation, a Netflix executive has revealed.
The couple, who signed a lucrative five-year deal with Netflix in 2020, will be under pressure to secure a ratings hit to justify their reputed US$100 million ($163m) payday.
It comes after the couple appeared at the premiere of Bob Marley: One Love in Jamaica, alongside Paramount Pictures chief executive Brian Robbins, fuelling speculation they may be courting a new deal.
Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s chief content officer, revealed the Sussexes had several major projects in the pipeline and were working with Brandon Riegg, vice president of unscripted content.
Asked at a preview event in Hollywood what was next for Prince Harry and Meghan, she replied: “Oh, what are they working on?
“They have a couple of unscripted things they’re working on with Brandon.
Harry and Meghan might be in need of some more projects to fund their Hollywood lifestyle. Picture / Netflix
“And they actually have a bunch of development, they have a movie in development, a (scripted) series that they’re working on. So all very early development, with a movie, a TV show and a couple of unscripted shows. But, yeah, the movie’s great.”
Netflix is said to have stumped up £3m ($6m) to secure the film rights to Carley Fortune’s Meet Me at the Lake, a romantic novel that will be produced by the Sussexes’ Archewell Productions.
The book, published last May, is understood to have resonated with the couple, exploring themes of mental health, postnatal depression and childhood trauma over losing a parent in a car crash.
As part of the next phase of their deal, the Duke is said to be hoping to return to Africa to make a documentary, although the project is in the early stages.
Sources close to the couple have previously told the Telegraph that they also have several “fun” television series in the pipeline.
“There will be more of a heavy focus on fictional, scripted content,” one said. “It will be romcoms, feel-good and light-hearted programmes.”
A clip from the recent Netflix documentary, Heart of Invictus, which followed last year’s Games. Photo / Netflix
For the most part, the couple will adopt executive producer roles, allowing them to pursue other projects and philanthropic work.
The Sussexes’ Netflix output stalled last year due to the Hollywood writers’ strike.
So far, they have produced only a handful of shows. Their six-part Harry & Meghan docuseries was released in December 2022.
Heart of Invictus, the Duke’s behind-the-scenes documentary about the competitors preparing for the 2022 Games, followed last August and they also lent their voices to Live to Lead, a series featuring pre-recorded interviews with global leaders and activists.
Meghan’s animated show Pearl, about powerful women of history, was dropped.
Meanwhile, Archewell lost another senior member of staff last month when Bennett Levine, a production manager, quit after just two years.
