Prince Harry and Meghan Markle make surprising move despite ‘professional separation’

A significant new update has emerged regarding Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s Netflix agreement.

After leaving the UK and relocating to the US in 2020 due to the pressures of the British press and tensions within the royal family, Harry and Meghan have given the world small glimpses into their life

The Sussexes now live in Montecito, Santa Barbara in California with their two children, Archie, six, and Lilibet, four.

The couple each have their own business ventures, including a shared Netflix docuseries, their charitable organisation Archewell, and Meghan's lifestyle brand, As Ever, which was followed by her own Netflix series, With Love, Meghan.

The eight-part Netflix series features a number of fellow famous faces, including Mindy Kaling, Abigail Spencer, Delfina Blaquier, and Roy Choi, giving viewers a chance to 'join Meghan in the kitchen, garden - and even at the beehive'.

The Sussexes are still working with Netflix (Gabriel Aponte/Getty Images)

In September 2020, the couple signed a streaming deal with Netflix to produce scripted series, documentaries and children’s specials.

While all of their projects have generated fanfare, some people were convinced that the couple’s deal would not be renewed. And in late 2024, reports arose that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were embarking on a 'professional separation'.

This means that they planned to focus on their own ventures, rather than embarking on them as a couple. This will also reportedly include having two different chiefs of staff.

Miranda Barbot, a veteran political and media adviser, will work solely for Harry. Meanwhile Sarah Fosmo, formerly an aide to Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates, will support Meghan.

This will include supporting Meghan's business As Ever, as well as overseeing the second series of With Love, Meghan and helping to produce episodes for the Duchess' podcast series, Confessions Of A Female Founder.

And the Sussexes will remain in business with Netflix as the Duke and Duchess announced they are extending their ‘multi-year, first look deal’ with the streaming service and their production company Archewell.

This disproves rumours that Netflix planned to part ways with the former royals, which would have been considerably strange considering the upcoming second season of Meghan’s lifestyle show.

However, a royal expert claimed that the royal family will have fresh ‘concerns’ over the content that Harry and Meghan create for Netflix going forward. With Harry’s fractured relationship with his father and brother, Richard Fitzwilliams said the royal household believe that a tell-all documentary could be ‘damaging’, per the Daily Express.

It is unclear how much the deal is worth, however, it was believed that the first Netflix deal was worth around $100m (£75m).