Prince Harry and Meghan could be at the height of their fame and fortune, a royal commentator claimed, hinting that everything could now go “downhill” for the couple. Daniela Elser commented on photos in which the couple rubbed shoulders with famous names like Kevin Costner at a dazzling charity event in California.
There, the Sussexes took selfies with Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry’s parents, as well as Ellen DeGeneres and his wife Portia de Rossi. However, it was pointed out that there was a huge gap between these celebrities and Harry and Meghan, who were isolated from the royal family.
Elser calculated that the couple’s earnings since leaving the royalty have been around £72 million, which is tiny compared to other big names at the charity event. The money came from the Netflix deal, the profits from the Harry’s Spare Book and the terminated contract from Spotify.
She explained that this could only be the pinnacle of the couple’s fame and fortune and that from here everything could be “decadent” in terms of their earning power in Hollywood, especially because of their Netflix and Spotify failures. In the New York Post, she wrote: “Sure, that’s probably $88 million more than you and I have to our names, but the sharpest and trickiest part that should keep the Sussex accountant up at night is that this figure can be considered not only as an exciting starting point for careers in Los Angeles, but possibly the peak of their earning power.
“It can be quite a descent from here. The money that Harry and Meghan have earned in recent years could be that. And it could be that it will have to keep them afloat for years, if not decades, since the Daily Mail and the Sun recently stated that Netflix will not renew their contract after it expires.
“All the time and forever they will have to pay their own security costs and finance their lifestyle. Basically, the problem that Harry and Meghan are facing is that Costner, DeGeneres, Winfrey and Perry have established careers and are proven to be successful.
“The same is hardly true of the palace exiles, who at best have temporarily dominated the cultural and political debate through their royal revelations and the questions they have raised about the monarchy, power and the media. Successful artists of the Duke and Duchess? Safe bets that executives want to spend money on? Widely revered public figures? You understand what I mean.
Elser points out that only one of the three Netflix series in which the couple was involved, Harry and Meghan, made it to the top of the list of the most watched streaming platforms. She explained that this meant that “the public is largely uninterested in what she has to say if it doesn’t involve her in real PR blood sports”.
The Sussexes participated in a PR campaign at the Invictus Games, where they were photographed while enjoying some PDAs and supporting the event founded by Prince Harry. However, this was overshadowed by Prince William’s trip to the USA, where he was treated like a “rock star”.
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Elser concluded: “Harry and Meghan are now moving in circles where their careers and fortunes are not even comparable to the success stories they have created around them.
“Their titles and belonging to the King Charles family will always distinguish them from their new best friends, but in terms of what they have achieved and earned independently since they left London, it is an absolutely tiny area compared to Winfrey, DeGeneres and Perry. They have not yet sold an arena, earned billions or built any kind of empire.”