Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, are pulling back the curtain on their love story and subsequent retreat from life as working royals.
After months of mystery, distributor Netflix released the highly anticipated doc series earlier this month. The project, which is directed by “What Happened, Miss Simone?” helmer Liz Garbus, promises an intimate account of the couple’s courtship—and unprecedented access to their tumultuous years as senior royals.
In the trailer, which shares an array of romantic photos of the couple but none with their two kids, Garbus is heard asking, “Why did you want to make this documentary?” to which Harry responds—in voiceover—”No one knows what’s happening behind closed doors.”
“I had to do everything I could to protect my family,” he says.
Markle, in an interview to camera, adds: “When the stakes are this high, doesn’t it make more sense to hear our story from us?”
The 50-second trailer was set to dramatic music and features a flash of Markle and Harry looking at one point visibly emotional during an interview. The first three episodes were released December 8.
In October, Markle discussed the series in a cover story for Variety.
“It’s nice to be able to trust someone with our story—a seasoned director whose work I’ve long admired,” the duchess said. The former actor and content producer also said it was exciting to see Prince Harry as a member of a proper film production.
“My husband has never worked in this industry before. For me, having worked on ‘Suits,’ it’s so amazing to be around so much creative energy and to see how people work together and share their own points of view. That’s been really fun.”
Royal watchers and the couple’s supporters will no doubt take note of the timing of the trailer release, which comes just one day after a member of Britain’s royal household, now identified as Lady Susan Hussey, resigned after making offensive remarks to a Black guest at Buckingham Palace during a private event hosted by Queen Consort Camilla.
Ngozi Fulani, a British-born charity head, detailed on Twitter an uncomfortable exchange between herself and a “Lady SH,” revealing that the latter had repeatedly asked her where she “really came from,” to which Fulani kept repeating she was born in Britain.
Hussey was Queen Elizabeth II’s lady-in-waiting.
Markle herself has been the subject of extensive scrutiny by the British tabloids. In an explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021, Markle and Harry said a member of the royal family had made a racist remark about their firstborn, Archie
About the series: In an unprecedented and in-depth documentary series, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex share the other side of their high-profile love story. Across six episodes, the series explores the clandestine days of their early courtship and the challenges that led to them feeling forced to step back from their full-time roles in the institution. With commentary from friends and family, most of whom have never spoken publicly before about what they witnessed, and historians who discuss the state of the British Commonwealth today and the royal family’s relationship with the press, the series does more than illuminate one couple’s love story, it paints a picture of our world and how we treat each other. From the critically-acclaimed, two-time Academy Award-nominated and Emmy-winning director Liz Garbus, Harry & Meghan is a never-before-seen look at one of the most-discussed couples in history.
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