Those close to the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan, have claimed she was ‘used’ by Netflix to promote its hit thriller, The Gentlemen.
The ex-Royal and media personality, 45, was a high-profile actor in the long-running legal drama Suits, but left Hollywood behind when she married her now-husband, Prince Harry.
Over the past few years, she has been living in America with her family, where she has opened up about her life in and out of UK royalty and launched a lifestyle brand, As Ever, which came with its own Netflix series, which has since been cancelled.
In recent weeks, she, her husband and two children, have all moved back to the UK in a surprise decision. In August, when chatter about their move started emerging, reports also claimed the Duchess wanted to tap back into her acting roots.
With The Gentlemen season two on the horizon, it was said that the former screen star was in ‘advanced talks’ to join the Guy Ritchie drama for a future third season.
Ultimately, it is understood that discussions fell through after immense public scrutiny over the potential gig. Now friends are claiming the rumours were purposefully leaked.
Insiders believe she was ‘used’ to bolster the show ahead of its release, where it struggled to reach the viewing highs of the first season. According to Deadline, viewing figures dropped by 15% compared to the season one debut, in the form of 500k viewers.
A source told The Telegraph: ‘Some people in her camp feel she was used to help promote season two, because they knew it wasn’t as good as the first season and had already commissioned a third.’
They continued: ‘It’s the oldest marketing trick in the book: get a big name to read a script, then leak that you’re “in conversation” with them when, in reality, nothing is particularly far along.
‘The whole thing left a bit of a sour taste in the Sussex camp’s mouth. Needless to say, Netflix got what it wanted: huge viewing figures for season two and a lot of publicity.’
There’s no further official word on when and what we can expect Meghan’s acting comeback to be, if she decides to pursue it at all, considering the potential for public backlash.
The couple have had a rocky return to the UK, with difficulties already arising around their children’s schooling.
They recently made their first official public outing as they greeted waiting fans in Nottingham, although there was reportedly some heckling as well.
Metro has reached out to Netflix for comment.