Meghan Markle ‘steps away’ from Prince Harry following Spotify collapse
The couple are each set to go it alone as they attempt to get their struggling careers back on track amid a bruising few weeks.
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Meghan Markle is reportedly shifting away from collaborations with her husband, Prince Harry, amid a turbulent period in their post-royal careers.
There’s been plenty of speculation about what might come next for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex following the axing of their $29 million Spotify deal, doubts about the renewal of their reported $150 million Netflix contract and a flurry of scathing reviews by everyone from a streaming service executive to a top Hollywood agent to Rolling Stone.
According to the UK’s Bella magazine, Meghan is now taking a “step away” from their joint brand to focus on solo projects.
The publication cited the unexpected blow of losing their Spotify deal as a factor in her decision to establish her own separate brand.
“Meghan feels she’ll have better success if she takes the time to work on projects alone without Harry – even though he always gives her his full support,” a source said.
The insider added that her recent decision to sign with Hollywood talent agency WME – which also represents Adele and Serena Williams - was about making her a “power player” in the industry in her own right.
Following the axing of her podcast, Archetypes, as part of the collapse of her Spotify deal, Meghan is reportedly now gearing up for a “string of commercial endorsements in fields meaningful to her, such as food, wellness, fashion and therapy”, reports the MailOnline.
It’s also understood that she’s considering publishing her own book, “most likely with a feminist angle”, off the back of the success of Harry’s best-selling memoir, Spare, and as part of the couple’s lucrative reported four-book deal with Penguin Random House.
The latest development in the couple’s career plans comes amid reports the couple are claiming they’ve been “repeatedly unlucky” in their attempts to relaunch themselves since quitting royal duties.
In the months after leaving Britain in early 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex signed several high-profile deals in quick succession worth tens of millions of dollars, seemingly laying the groundwork for an empire to follow.
Fast-forward three years, and that plan appears to have gone awry.
“The word is that they think they’ve been really unlucky,” an LA source told The Daily Mail, adding that they believe Covid-19, economic downturns and the deaths of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II have significantly hampered their efforts.
Originally published as Meghan Markle ‘steps away’ from Prince Harry following Spotify collapse
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