Harry and Meghan, still known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex despite abrogating their positions within the royal family, have inked a “megawatt” multi-project, multi-year (and likely multi-million dollar) deal with streaming entertainment company Netflix, The New York Times reports Wednesday, confirming rumors that circulated just weeks ago.
The contract is the first official project to bear both Harry’s and Meghan’s name since the pair announced that they were separating from the royal family back in February to pursue a new life in North America, ostensibly out of the public eye. The plan then, The Daily Wire reported back in August, was for the pair to earn their own living delivering speeches and making appearances at corporate events, hopefully netting a series of hundred-thousand-dollar paydays.
Because of the novel coronavirus, corporate events have ceased for the moment, and the pair was pursuing other avenues of profit, including an eco-friendly “sustainable tourism” company called Travlyst.
Now, it seems, they’re planning to take on the role of “mega-producers.”
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have founded a yet-to-be-named production company and signed a multiyear deal with Netflix, which will pay them to make documentaries, docu-series, feature films, scripted shows, and children’s programming — giving the couple a global platform six months after their dramatic decampment from the House of Windsor,” the NY Times reported.
“Our focus will be on creating content that informs but also gives hope,” the couple said in a statement released to media. “As new parents, making inspirational family programming is also important to us.”
They also hope to “share impactful content that unlocks action.”
Neither the couple nor Netflix has yet revealed how much the contract is worth, but the pair were said to be basing their approach to production on Barack and Michelle Obama’s contract with Netflix, which was inked last year. That contract is also likely worth tens of millions.
“We’re incredibly proud they have chosen Netflix as their creative home and are excited about telling stories with them that can help build resilience and increase understanding for audiences everywhere,” Netflix’s chief of content said in his own statement.
The Netflix deal will likely involve the pair’s rumored “woke” programming; Harry and Meghan were said to be pitching a number of projects centered around “feminism,” “racial justice” and other pet social justice causes to several outlets, Netflix included. They’ve already produced a documentary called “Rising Phoenix” about wounded soldiers competing in the Invictus Games, and the first children’s programming project will be “an animated series…focused on inspiring women,” the NY Times says.
They are also reportedly looking at a TV series that “will focus on two issues closest to [Meghan’s] heart – female empowerment and racial equality” perhaps based on the Duchess’s life before marrying into royalty. “It will tackle discrimination like that faced by mixed-race Meghan herself as she grew up in Los Angeles.”