Meghan Markle's reported role in The Gentlemen withdrawn after UK backlash
The Duchess of Sussex's reported casting in season three of Guy Ritchie's Netflix series The Gentlemen has been withdrawn following intense backlash in the UK, according to former Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown.
The reported casting of Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, in the third season of Guy Ritchie's Netflix crime series The Gentlemen has been withdrawn, according to Tina Brown, the former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker.
Brown wrote on Saturday that she had learned the casting decision was reversed. «The backlash in the UK was so intense, it became untenable to go forward,» she said. The Duchess had been believed to be under consideration for a role in the show, which follows a British duke who unexpectedly inherits his father's country estate and becomes entangled in the criminal underworld.
The reported move would have marked a return to acting for Markle, who stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and relocated to the United States with her husband, Prince Harry. Before her marriage into the royal family, she was known for her role in the legal drama Suits, which ran for seven seasons.
The Gentlemen, created by Ritchie, began as a 2019 film before being adapted into a Netflix series. The show has been a significant success for the streaming platform, blending Ritchie's signature style of British crime storytelling with a cast that has included Theo James and Kaya Scodelario. Season three had been widely anticipated, and the possibility of Markle joining the production generated considerable media attention.
The news of the withdrawal follows a period of heightened public scrutiny of the Duchess in the UK. Brown's statement suggests that the strength of negative public sentiment played a decisive role in the decision. Neither Netflix nor representatives for Markle have issued an official comment on the reported development.
The episode adds another chapter to the ongoing narrative surrounding the Duchess of Sussex's public profile in Britain, where her popularity has remained markedly lower than in other parts of the world. The reported casting had already sparked debate across British media, with commentators divided over the appropriateness of her involvement in a project centred on the British aristocracy.
For Netflix, the situation presents a delicate challenge. The Gentlemen remains one of its flagship British productions, and the company has also maintained a lucrative deal with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex through their Archewell Productions banner. That arrangement has produced several documentaries and series, though its future has been the subject of speculation in recent months.
Ritchie, known for films such as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, has not publicly addressed the reports. The production schedule for season three has not been confirmed, and it remains unclear whether the reported withdrawal will affect the timeline for the show's release.
