Tina Brown, the former editor of Vanity Fair, has publicly critiqued Meghan Markle’s new Netflix series, With Love, Meghan, declaring it indicative of an “unerring instinct for getting it wrong.” In her newsletter Fresh Hell, she expressed that the only truly effective show would have featured Meghan admitting to the shortcomings of her last five years, implying a need for candid reflection on her experiences since stepping back from royal duties.
Brown described Meghan as someone who “has never figured out a convincing persona” and claims the Duchess is “too damn impatient.” She questioned the wisdom behind announcing a new lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard, and pursuing endorsements from celebrity friends for her strawberry jam on social media without confirming trademark availability, suggesting a lack of forethought. Moreover, she voiced bafflement over the Sussexes' choice to forgo potential roles within the Royal Family in favour of a lucrative Netflix partnership, which she believes has backfired.
In her critical analysis, Brown noted, “Meghan has come out with a show about fake perfection just when the zeitgeist has turned raucously against it.” She attributed the failure of the Sussexes' exit from royal life to their impatience, suggesting that Meghan ought to have taken a quiet period to focus on family and the opportunities that might have arisen following Prince William's ascension to the title of Prince of Wales.
The performance of With Love, Meghan has been discouraging; only 526,000 households watched the series in its first five days of release, significantly lower than the 2.1 million households that tuned into the earlier documentary series Harry & Meghan. The data, collected by Samba TV, indicated that the series garnered greater interest in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania than in the UK, Canada, or the US, where it struggled to maintain a position within the top ten rankings on Netflix.
Despite the lacklustre reception, Meghan celebrated a second season renewal on social media, acknowledging “mistakes” and asserting that she continues to learn. However, an insider with connections to Netflix informed MailOnline that while the filming for the second season was completed simultaneously with the first, the overall contract with Netflix has not been renewed.
Concerns have also arisen among Netflix executives regarding the negative reviews of the series. The publication Variety labelled With Love, Meghan as “a Montecito ego trip not worth taking,” criticising it as a forced showcase for Meghan’s guests to extol her virtues. Ratings for the show have plummeted, achieving just an 11 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which places it unfavourably behind wrestling and sitcoms in terms of viewer satisfaction.
In the face of criticism, the Duchess continues to push ahead with her lifestyle brand, which is set to debut in two Netflix stores located in major retail centres in the United States. Despite the enthusiasm surrounding the brand's launch, the specifics regarding product offerings and pricing remain undisclosed. This venture appears increasingly reliant on the performance and reception of her recent series, with Netflix’s commitments now seemingly under critical scrutiny.
Source: Noah Wire Services