Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex (R), and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (L), visit the Lightway Academy, a primary and secondary school in Abuja, Nigeria, in May 2024. On Monday, the couple announced a new “multi-year, first look deal” with Netflix. File Photo by Afolabi Sotunde/EPA
Aug. 11 (UPI) — Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have signed a new “multi-year, first look deal” with Netflix, the couple’s media company Archewell Productions announced Monday.
While the agreement puts an end to any rumors that Netflix would not be renewing its contract, the added “first-look” clause means the streaming giant can reject any of the couple’s film or television projects.
The initial deal, five years ago, was believed to be worth about $100 million. No word on the length or value of the latest contract.
“To date, Archewell Productions has released Polo; With Love, Meghan; Heart of Invictus; Harry & Meghan and Live to Lead. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Netflix have also partnered on the lifestyle product brand, As ever,” according to a press release from the media company.
Cooking show With Love, Meghan will launch its second season later this month and a Christmas special in December after drawing 5.3 million views during its first season. Those numbers placed the show below the top 300 most popular Netflix shows for the first part of this year.
The Netflix documentary, titled Harry & Meghan, drew a larger audience with 23.4 million views.
“The response to their work speaks for itself — Harry & Meghan gave viewers an intimate look into their lives and quickly became one of our most-watched documentary series,” said Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s chief content officer.
Besides a second season of With Love, Meghan, Archewell Productions is working on other projects including the romance feature, Meet Me at the Lake and a documentary short, Masaka Kids, a Rhythm Within, about an orphanage in Uganda.
“We’re proud to extend our partnership with Netflix and expand our work together to include the As ever brand,” Markle, 44, said.
“My husband and I feel inspired by our partners who work closely with us and our Archewell Productions team to create thoughtful content across genres that resonates globally, and celebrates our shared vision.”