Meghan Markle, Prince Harry documentary is 'self-serving twaddle': royal expert
True Royalty TV co-founder Nick Bullen says the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are "Kardashians on a regal basis" with their Netflix docuseries "Harry & Meghan."
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's next Netlfix documentary about "inspiring leaders" has been slammed by royal experts.
Kinsey Schofield, host of the "To Di For" podcast, told Fox News Digital the upcoming doc "sounds incredibly boring." The Duke and Duchess of Sussex released the trailer for the seven-part docuseries titled "Live to Lead" on Monday. The series is set to drop Dec. 31.
The show profiles several social justice leaders, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, climate activist Greta Thunberg, Gloria Steinem and lawyer Bryan Stevenson.
Notably absent from the series is Harry's grandmother – the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's next Netflix documentary was criticized by royal experts. (Victoria Jones)
"Harry and Meghan teaching us about leadership is like Rachel Dolezal teaching us about honesty," Schofield noted. "I’m not surprised that they did not include the queen. Meghan purposely excluded the queen when she guest-edited Vogue's ‘Forces for Change’ issue. This entire special is just an attempt by Harry and Meghan to try to align or associate themselves with individuals that have successfully made names for themselves with their philanthropy."
"Reminder: Harry is only given a platform because of his DNA and Meghan only has these opportunities because of her husband's DNA. They are not in the same league as Greta Thunberg or Nelson Mandela," she continued. "Harry and Meghan know that ‘You are who you associate with...’ – which is why they cling to their royal titles and create content like this so they can try to worm their way into these elite circles."
The couple released the trailer for "Live to Lead" on the heels of their first docuseries with Netflix, "Harry and Meghan." (Mike Coppola)
Prince Harry and Markle said the docuseries was inspired by Nelson Mandela, although that tidbit didn't impress royal expert Schofield.
"And please give Nelson Mandela a rest. Mr. Mandela was so close to Princess Diana and it seems like Harry and Meghan are completely hijacking Diana's story and legacy," she told Fox News Digital. "Leaving Prince William irate."
Royal contributor Shannon Felton Spence noted Netflix was "smart" to start off Prince Harry and Markle's content with the documentary about themselves.
"It would benefit everyone for them to leave their grievance behind once and for all and fully step up as feel-good conveners and storytellers the way they keep saying they want to."
"The Netflix deal was for more than just the Harry and Meghan documentary, but Netflix knew that was the only guaranteed big hit. So they put it up front, I’m sure that was part of the deal, and now we’ll see some of that 'inspiring' content they have been promising."
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"Harry and Meghan" detailed their decision to leave their roles as working royals. (Reuters)
However, Spence isn't sure their content will be successful after they "cashed in" their royal stories.
"But only time will tell if they have any cache outside of their royal status. I think after six hours of documentary we’re all ready to turn that page. We’ll have to wait and see how successful that type of content will be after they have cashed in on all their royal stories. Netflix was smart to have the Harry & Meghan documentary upfront."
Netflix dropped their first docuseries with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex on Dec. 8.
"Harry & Meghan" is a six-part series that told the couple's experience as working royals and explained why they decided to step back from their senior roles.
Meghan Markle married Prince Harry in 2018, and the two announced their decision to step back from their royal roles in 2020. (Jeff J Mitchell)
Markle became a working royal after marrying Harry in 2018, and they announced they were stepping back from their royal roles in January 2020. Buckingham Palace later confirmed the couple was resigning as working royals in February 2021.
"The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have confirmed to Her Majesty The Queen that they will not be returning as working members of The Royal Family," the palace said at the time.
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Fox News Digital's Ashley Papa contributed to this report.
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