Meghan Markle served hot single-skillet spaghetti in her Netflix series, but the ratings were lukewarm.
The Duchess of Sussex’s highly anticipated lifestyle show, “With Love, Meghan,” drew a mere 526,000 households according to Samba TV, a tech company that measures audience data, Forbes reported. According to the outlet, those numbers include live plus five-day viewership of the program in its premiere.
In comparison, her 2022 docuseries, “Harry & Meghan,” in which she and her husband Prince Harry aired their struggles with royal life, reached 2.1 million households following its debut.
MEGHAN MARKLE’S ESTRANGED FATHER RIPS NETFLIX SERIES, ACCUSES DUCHESS OF ‘FAKING IT FOR THE CAMERAS’
“The transition from Queen of Victimhood and score-settling to Betty Crocker is going to require a lot more than store-bought peanut butter pretzels,” Kinsey Schofield, host of the “To Di For Daily” podcast, told Fox News Digital.
“I think people have seen for themselves who Meghan Markle is, and they don’t like her,” she claimed. “On top of the real lack of authenticity, they’ve already made up their minds about her and don’t have the patience to be convinced otherwise.”
“Public interest in Meghan Markle will always be directly associated with her proximity to the British royal family,” Schofield stressed. “That is why none of these new projects have worked out.”
“With Love Meghan” became available for streaming on March 4 after it was postponed due to the Los Angeles fires.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER
“’With Love, Meghan’ lacked the one thing that makes her interesting – the in-laws who refused to give her any access to them because they considered her untrustworthy,” Schofield claimed.
Royal experts argued that the real stars of Netflix aren’t Meghan and Harry – it’s the family they escaped from.
The 2022 documentary “Live To Lead,” which was produced by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, failed to hit the top 10 on Netflix, making it unclear how many views it ultimately scored, Deadline.com reported. The 2023 documentary “Heart of Invictus,” which focuses on Harry’s passion project, the Invictus Games, as well as his “Polo” series, also failed to hit the top 10 in its first week, the outlet shared.
“Meghan, along with Harry, are not interesting,” British broadcaster and photographer Helena Chard told Fox News Digital. “They are not fun, entertaining personalities. I’d go as far as to say they are bland and, as such, their shows are bland.
“And I don’t believe Harry’s heart is in creating shows. He isn’t an expert in this field, and I imagine he wonders why he should put effort into something that doesn’t interest him.”
“On the other hand, Meghan loves being the center of attention,” Chard claimed. “[I feel] she craves the limelight. However, Meghan is disliked by many. She seems so desperate to be someone she isn’t. It’s simple – the public does not warm up to her. She grates on people’s nerves and her inauthenticity is more than cringey, it’s intolerable.”
Meghan, a former American actress who starred in the legal drama “Suits,” married the British prince in 2018. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020 and moved to California. They cited the unbearable intrusions and racist attitudes of the British media for their royal exit.
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
Since leaving the U.K., the couple have aired their grievances in interviews, as well as Harry’s 2023 memoir “Spare.”
In 2020, Prince Harry and his wife signed a multi-year deal to produce nature series, documentaries and children’s programming for the streaming service.
In “Harry & Meghan,” the couple shared their love story and spoke out against the British monarchy. Meghan talked about struggling with toxic press coverage while Harry described how his older brother, Prince William, shouted at him. The Duke of Sussex also shared in great detail how his relationship with the royal household broke down following his relationship with Meghan.
WATCH: MEGHAN MARKLE AND PRINCE HARRY JOCKEY FOR ATTENTION AS PRINCE WILLIAM, KATE MIDDLETON MAKE HISTORY IN US
“I don’t think that the two shows are comparable,” royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams explained to Fox News Digital. “’Harry & Meghan’ was an intimate and rather daring documentary which gave insights into their royal life. It was destructive, but it was novel… Meghan’s infamous mock curtsy, which was seen as insulting… was [a] low point. It was, undeniably, what Netflix wanted… and wonderfully sensational for the makers of ‘The Crown.’”
“There was a fascination with the couple,” said Fitzwilliams. “That gave them power, which they misused. The road led to ‘Spare’ and a total rift with the royal family. [But] ‘With Love, Meghan’ is feeble. It’s a saccharine load of self-love… A series like ‘Polo,’ an elitist sport, was never going to take off on Netflix. They hardly appeared in it and should not have wasted time filming it.”
“Netflix must decide if they want to renew parts of their contract,” Fitzwilliams warned.
Fitzwilliams believes this is a make-or-break moment for the duchess, who is launching her lifestyle brand, As Ever, sometime in the spring. The 43-year-old confirmed that the streaming giant is a partner. Products are expected to be sold at Netflix stores.
Season 2 of “With Love, Meghan” will also premiere in the fall.
“The test will come when Season 2 is released,” he said. “The fans will stick with it, but I strongly suspect interest will peter out. If it reaches the top 10 again for any length of time, she will undoubtedly be relieved.”
But if Season 2 tanks, Fitzwilliams said, he wouldn’t be surprised if Netflix “walks away.”
“Netflix will not have appreciated the ferocity of the latest reviews,” said Fitzwilliams. “The second season was also filmed back-to-back. That means no one had an opportunity to learn from the reaction to the first. Surely, this was a dreadful mistake.”
“They’ve lost both sides of the pond,” claimed British royal expert Hilary Fordwich. “Instead of the show ‘taking something ordinary and elevating it,’ she’s done the exact opposite. She’s taking something globally wonderful – the opportunity to be a royal representative across the Commonwealth highlighting humanitarian efforts of global causes – and ruined her future [as a royal].”
But Meghan appears to be following the royal motto – keep calm and carry on.
On Thursday, the mother of two announced that her podcast, “Confessions of a Female Founder,” is debuting on April 8 with an eight-episode season. The series, produced by Lemonada Media, will follow Meghan as she has conversations with female founders about building a brand.
Schofield said Meghan’s latest venture will be a tougher sell than jam.
MEGHAN MARKLE ACCUSED OF COPYING IDEAS AS SHE LAUNCHES NEW PODCAST PROJECT
“Good luck with her new podcast about female founders – I fell asleep halfway through reading the title.”
