The Sussexes have a new project in the works (Image: Getty)
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s new Netflix offering could be a grand success if it follows one key rule, a PR expert has claimed. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are backing a new drama series for the streaming giant.
Harry and Meghan will be executive-producing a “polo-themed” show, which will reportedly be set in the “high-flying equestrian town” of Wellington, Florida. The new drama will be co-produced by Archewell Productions, the Sussexes’ media production company, and Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage’s Fake Empire, according to Deadline.
The couple’s latest offering and its success were questioned by a number of royal watchers, but a PR expert has claimed there’s a chance for it.
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Prince Harry playing polo in 2023 (Image: Getty)
Renae Smith, founder and director of The Atticism, said the drama series could win audiences if it has one key trait – honesty.
She told the Daily Express: “In theory, it has more going for it than their recent projects, but it could go either way.
“If it doesn’t centre them, feature them, or even hint of them (no cameos, ever) – it already has a better chance. That’s just the truth.
“There is very clear audience fatigue when it comes to Harry and Meghan-led content. People are far more likely to engage with something where their names sit behind it, rather than being the focus of it.
“That said, it’s still hard to predict. Meghan would have had a fair amount of control over her own show and that didn’t land, and the Polo doc clearly didn’t connect either. So there’s a pattern there.
“Two failures don’t make me think the third will be a raging success. Though with scripted drama, everything comes down to storyline, casting and execution, and we just don’t know enough yet to judge it properly.”
But she added: “Polo as a world is actually quite watchable. If you look at other series set in those kinds of environments, whether it’s high society in Florida or those slightly chaotic, members-only worlds, people tune in for escapism.
“It’s a peek into a lifestyle most people will never access. That’s the appeal. It’s glossy, it’s dramatic, and often it’s a bit of a car crash.
“But the key is honesty. Audiences are very comfortable watching wealth and privilege when it’s presented as exactly that.
“What they don’t respond well to is being told it’s relatable or accessible when it clearly isn’t.”
The new show comes two years after Prince Harry’s polo doc and it will be written by Teacup’s Francisca X. Hu, who will also serve as an exec-producer alongside the Sussex couple and and head of scripted content Tracy Ryerson, and Fake Empire’s Schwartz and Savage.