Meghan Markle and Prince Harry suffer new blow as their production chief jumps ship amid Netflix uncertainty

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry suffer new blow as their production chief jumps ship amid Netflix uncertainty

WATCH NOW: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle invited to film premiere in Jamaica by Paramount CEO

GB News
Dorothy Reddin

By Dorothy Reddin


Published: 30/01/2024

- 08:18

Updated: 30/01/2024

- 10:25

Bennett Levine left Archewell Productions earlier this month

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have suffered a new blow as the manager of their production company has quit.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex founded Archewell Productions in October 2020, as part of their Archewell Foundation.


Programming released through Archewell Productions includes Heart of Invictus, focusing on the Invictus Games which Prince Harry created in 2014.

However, Archewell Production's manager, Bennett Levine, left the company earlier this month.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle founded Archewell Productions in 2020

Getty

Levine was previously promoted to be the manager of Archewell in 2022. He was originally taken on as co-ordinator for the business in 2021.

His appointment was hailed at the time by the Sussexes' biographer, Omid Scobie, as a sign that Archewell was "a hive of activity that continues to grow".

The former manager confirmed his departure on social media, sharing that he is moving to a new job at an American film financing and distribution company. He wrote: "I'm happy to share that I'm starting a new position at Cinetic Media."

A source told The Mail: "It's a blow to the company. There's no doubt about that."

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry do charity work through the Archewell Foundation

Archewell

Production managers tend to take care of the business, financial and recruitment side of film and television productions.

Levine's exit comes amid rumours that Netflix may not renew its deal with Archewell. The US streaming giant paid the Sussexes a reported £80million in 2020 as part of a deal that ends in 2025.

Reports that the couple may end their Netflix deal were fuelled by their recent trip to Jamaica for the film premiere of Bob Marley: One Love.

This is because the Sussexes were invited as guests of the Paramount Pictures CEO, Brian Robbins. Paramount is a major streaming rival of Netflix.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

Harry and Meghan attended a film premiere in Jamaica at the invitation of the Paramount CEO

Getty
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

Harry and Meghan's Spotify deal was recently ended in the summer of 2023

PA

Spotify previously cancelled its £18million deal with the couple last summer. Meghan only produced one podcast with the streaming giant named Archetypes, which featured celebrities like Mariah Carey and Serena Williams

The Duchess of Sussex previously hinted that the year 2024 would feature big projects from herself and her husband.

Meghan, 42, was interviewed on the red carpet at a showbusiness event in Los Angeles last November, where she declared that she and Prince Harry had "so many exciting things on the slate" to announce.

She added: "Things that make people feel – I was going say 'good', but it's more than that – things that make people feel something, right?"

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