Headlines were made when it was reported that Meghan Markle was pondering an acting comeback when she and Prince Harry return to the U.K.
Specifically, she was reported to be in discussions for a role in “The Gentlemen,” the Guy Ritchie-produced Netflix hit set to return with its second season in September.
British Backlash
However, those reports seem to have stirred up enough backlash with the British public that the offer from “The Gentlemen” is reportedly no longer on the table.
Tina Brown, former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, dropped a bombshell in a report she wrote on Substack on Saturday, August 22.
“I learned this morning that the casting of Meghan Markle in Season 3 of Guy Ritchie’s Netflix series ‘The Gentlemen’ has been withdrawn,” Brown wrote.
“The backlash in the U.K. was so intense, it became untenable to go forward,” Brown added, promising there would be more details to come. “This does not bode well for Meghan’s acting comeback in the U.K.”
Previous ‘Advanced Discussions’
The day before Brown’s report, The Hollywood Reporter indicated that Markle had been in “advanced discussions to join an existing Netflix TV show that shoots in the U.K.”
The report added, “The part is currently being written, so it’s unclear how many episodes she would appear in. Additional details were not immediately available.”
Soon after that, the floodgates burst as further information emerged about the Duchess of Sussex’s potential new acting role.
The next to report was People, with the outlet confirming that the role under discussion was “The Gentlemen.”
Australian journalist Bronte Coy, who broke the story of the Duchess of Sussex’s attempt at an acting comeback, told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” that the offer for “The Gentlemen” was among the factors that had influenced she and Prince Harry to decide to move back to London from their current home in California.
“The Gentlemen” was to have been the former “Suits” star’s first acting role since 2017, when she quit Hollywood in order to marry Harry and become a member of Britain’s royal family.
‘A Key Part of the Puzzle’
Prior to Brown’s report that the deal had been kiboshed, Coy told “Today” that an acting comeback was a big reason behind the couple’s upcoming move to the U.K.
“This is such a key part of the puzzle,” she said.
“I think when we all heard that news that Harry and Meghan were moving here, and within a matter of days, and the kids were enrolled in school, everyone was asking, what is Meghan going to be doing?” Coy added, noting that her role in “The Gentlemen” was said to be “significant, and she’s very excited about it.”
Reparing the Rift with King Charles
GettyThat said, the most significant factor in the couple’s return to England is so that Harry can attempt to repair the rift with his cancer-stricken father, King Charles.
As a source told Page Six, Charles “looks forward” to spending time with his youngest son, as well as his grandchildren.
“I know that Charles is the reason they are moving back,” that source said.
