Why are Meghan Markle and Prince Harry still flopping?

Sometimes you can tell when a celebrity is entering the flop phase. I remember very well that Katy Perry used drag queens as props Saturday night Live In 2017, with a rapper who recently used a homophobic slur wearing a funky striped jacket in this style Beetlejuice – Piggy SpriteAnd I knew about the launch of her album, Witness, It would have been a complete disaster. Similarly, when Dakota Johnson shamefully accused Ellen DeGeneres of lying during a landmark interview on the talk show of the same name, it slowed down the flow of negative news in the press. Suddenly, after decades as the queen of daytime TV, the dire end of DeGeneres’ reign seemed inevitable.

About this royaltiesThat’s exactly what I feel when I think of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex. After flying to the United States to start a new life in the wake of a racist and misogynist slander campaign in the British press – in which, according to allegations, the royal establishment and their families actively cooperate – the couple donated million Signed a series-dollar deal with the biggest streaming platform. and then there was He Revealing memoir.

As much sympathy as I have for the abysmal way this couple has been treated since their wedding in 2018 – and I have the same feeling – the appetite for material about them is diminishing. On June 15, it was announced that Markle’s deal with Spotify was ending after just one season of her podcast archetype, (Sources are divided on who made the decision, but there have been reports that Spotify was unhappy with Markle’s poor performance in the face of a $20 million deal.)

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The news prompted Jeremy Zimmer, CEO of United Talent Agency, to take the unusual step of publicly questioning his credentials. “Apparently Meghan Markle wasn’t a great talent for an audio project, or in general,” Zimmer explained. semaphore during the Cannes Lions Marketing Festival. “Just being famous doesn’t make you good at anything.”

A frame from the ‘Harry and Meghan’ documentary. Photo: Netflix

If we go back to 2021, the Sussexes planned a huge media event when they were interviewed by Oprah Winfrey. The interview was filled with viral moments in line with the way content is consumed in today’s social media landscape, such as Winfrey’s famous line, “Were you silenced or were you silenced?” More importantly, there have been claims about how Markle was treated by the establishment when she had suicidal thoughts, as well as alleged racist comments that were made against her newborn son Archie. About the skin were made by members of the English Crown. This interview was enough to make many (but not all) of his detractors think. Importantly, it reunited the couple and ushered in a new era of sharing their story after years inside an infamous institution.

However, after Oprah, war was in the air. More and more mud was hurled at the press and it seemed that the feud progressed at an uncontrolled pace. Sensing a growing craving – and now finding themselves paying a heavy price for personal security and lifestyle – the couple signed deals with Spotify, Netflix and Apple. Prince Harry reportedly made over $20 million for his memoir, Excessive, and, according to forbesThe earnings from the streaming deal would be around 135 million.

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Despite so much money, the Sussexes’ projects were only half successful. His Netflix documentary, Harry and Meghan, which essentially served as a longer version of Oprah’s interview with more backstory, topped the platform’s “most viewed” list for several weeks. prince harry book, shotbroke all records and became the best-selling non-fiction volume of all time.

Part of the problem the Sussexes face is that they have based their brand on a rivalry with the royal family. Now the fight has reached a deadlock and now there is not much to say. Prince Harry’s book has resonated so much because it goes back so far as his childhood and gives so many scandalous details about the current Queen Camilla and the loss of her virginity. But, after all these stories, it seems there may not be much more to share about his estrangement from the royal family.

The Sussexes find themselves in a difficult position: their appetite for material about their differences with the royal establishment is dwindling, as serving it up in so many different formats now seems excessive. But there’s not much enthusiasm for other projects like podcasts. archetypeWhich is not related to the Windsor question.

Harry and Meghan are also discovering that being a “celebrity” is different from being a celebrity act royally, Royal families, due to the nature of the institution of which they are a part, benefit from biased media coverage, especially in Britain, where the ultimate goal of the press and political establishment is to keep them relevant and popular. But, as VIPs who are now the royal family in name only, the couple will have to generate their own interest and cultural relevance.

Perhaps the Sussexes can look to the Kardashian-Jenner family for inspiration. The First Family, led by matriarch Kris Jenner reality TV I’ve always understood that staying relevant means constantly reinventing yourself. Kim Kardashian is one of the greatest quick-change artists in American culture. it was once a reality stars Kitsch, like many others, became famous because of a sex tape. Now she’s a fashion lover, criminal justice reform activist, billionaire mogul and A-list celebrity.

The Kardashian clan has always done this Business On strength of numbers. original reality show title, keeping up with the Kardashians, was fitting because, even when nothing particularly dramatic or interesting was going on for Kim, the story of one of her sisters was usually a strange tale — whether it was a wedding, a betrothal, or a health crisis. The Kardashians’ excessive exposure seems less bothersome because they’re always giving us something new, but as a couple cut off from what’s going on in their families, the Sussexes’ arc is now at a standstill. It’s becoming distasteful, and worse: it’s becoming annoying.

So I wonder if it’s time for Harry and Meghan to reinvent themselves in a more drastic way. Maybe a return to acting for Markle? or a lifestyle brand a la gossip? He has to try something different, because I can’t shake the feeling that he hasn’t really earned the preacher role he’s trying to play. Harry and Meghan have been censured but it took decades of upheaval in the public eye to achieve the extraordinary status of Michelle Obama, where people listen when you speak and when you don’t respect you too. Totally agree with you.

Markle’s friend Oprah — whom the Golden Globes picked up for a lifetime achievement award following the #MeToo scandal — is another such character. His impassioned speech at the 2018 event prompted people to beg him to contest for the presidency. But it doesn’t look like the Sussexes have put in the work to get there – if reports are to be believed, Markle has barely bothered to write her own podcast.

After Spotify confirmed the termination of the deal with the Sussexes, right-wing media practically salivated over the news, declaring that “their empire is crumbling”. I don’t think that’s entirely true: The partnership with Netflix is ​​still on hold (though it looks like they got an ultimatum from the streamers) and there will definitely be another memoir coming soon, this time signed by Markle. You can call them ‘flops’ or just access issues, but the Sussexes are finding which platforms work for them – some obviously not, but the same goes for every celebrity. I’m not surprised that Markle’s Spotify series has failed to take off: The market for interview-based podcasts is so saturated, and even Michelle Obama, whose autobiography to become She broke similar records upon release, but she failed to achieve long-term success with her podcast on Spotify.

It seems like time has gone by without the Sussexes achieving Oprah prominence and Michelle Obama status, as these women have become icons by making their presence felt over the years. a point of view”less is more“They’ve been allowed to raise their voices when it really matters. If Harry and Meghan are to become icons through overexposure (as they currently are), they need to embrace the Kardashian spirit and give us something new.” is needed. Because now apart from confrontation royal family (which ended long ago), it seems they have nothing more to offer.

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