Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's year has been one of the "most difficult" and "challenging" since their split from the monarchy and self-launch as entertainment and philanthropic industrialists, Newsweek has heard.
The duke and duchess have seen a number of media highs and lows over the past 12 months, a period that saw their popularity plummet on either side of the Atlantic, only slowing regaining ground as they appeared to move away from bombshell projects and critical interviews about their lives as members of the royal family.
The year began with the publication of Harry's Spare memoir, which presented a double-edged sword of being the fastest selling non-fiction book of all time and also opening the prince and his wife up to pop-culture roasting on late-night and comedy shows.
The couple failed to secure acknowledgement from their Hollywood peers through earning a Primetime Emmy nomination for their Netflix docuseries Harry & Meghan, and the prince lost out on a Grammy nomination for his 15-hour self-recorded audiobook version of his memoir.
In addition to this, their ambitions to produce scripted movies through their Archewell Productions company were set back by the actors and writers strikes, there was the controversial handling of a New York paparazzi car chase and the publication of a royal tell-all book that publicly reopened old wounds in the couple's rift with the royal family.
"Harry and Meghan have certainly had one of their most difficult years with one PR nightmare after another, making 2023 one of their most challenging," Mark Boardman, entertainment expert and founder of MarkMeets, told Newsweek of the Sussexes, noting that despite this, success could still lie ahead.
"There have been exceptions," he said. "Notably the Duke of Sussex's successful Invictus Games, which always proves to be popular with viewers."
"Despite a drop in the duke and duchess' approval ratings following the release of their Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan, which broke multiple records, their popularity in the U.S....remains stronger than expected. Interestingly, Harry seems to be the more popular of the two, while for Meghan the streaming numbers for Suits still suggest a promising future for the media owner, actress, wife and mom."
Meghan's Suits stardom, pre-marriage to Harry, saw a revival of interest earlier this year when the nine-season show was added to Netflix's library in the U.S.
The duchess' seven-season run as paralegal, Rachel Zane, contributed to viewers tuning in among their thousands, breaking consecutive Nielsen streaming records in the process.
Notably though, according to Boardman, the couple's PR blows have been the dominant narrative carried through by the press and public.
"From Omid Scobie's tell-all book Endgame to a public mishap on stage where Meghan mistakenly reached for a microphone at Kevin Costner's charity event, and add in the humiliation from the South Park TV series and Jimmy Kimmel's jibes, it's evident that things haven't gone according to plan for the couple and they must wonder why it's not working," he said.
Moving forward, Harry and Meghan are left to negotiate their new Hollywood careers without the leverage power of a tell-all memoir, documentary or interview, all of which have now been done.
They have only one Hollywood project announced moving forward, a screen adaptation of the hit novel Meet Me at the Lake by author Carley Fortune. Speculation about future career outlets for the couple readily circulates in connection with lifestyle blogs and prospective documentaries.
While 2023 may have been a year of PR nightmares for the couple, 2024 could see them build towards a more positive outcome.
"One can only forecast that their fortunes will take a turn for the better in the coming year," Boardman suggested. "With more events to attend and the opportunity to work on multiple projects."
Newsweek approached representatives of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex via email for comment.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
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About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
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