Netflix wipes Meghan Markle’s animated series Pearl from slate of upcoming productions

Netflix has decided not to develop Meghan Markle’s animated series Pearl, citing budget constraints.

The US streamer last month reported a fall in subscriber counts for the first time in its decade-long history. The company also warned shareholders that it expects to lose two million customers as people cancel their Netflix subscriptions after the Covid-19 pandemic-fuelled boom in services.

As a result, Netflix stock dropped by 25 per cent – wiping over $40bn from its market value overnight.

Amid news of other cost-cutting moves, including executive-level layoffs within the marketing department, it has now been reported that Markle’s show is among several projects that Netflix has shelved.

Archewell Productions, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s company, announced last year that Markle would serve as executive producer on Pearl – a children’s series about a 12-year-old girl who is inspired by history’s famous feminist women.

Even thought Netflix has decided against Pearl, a representative for the streaming company told BBC News that they would continue to work on a number of other titles with Archewell Productions.

One of these is a documentary series titled Heart of Invictus about the athletes competing in the Invictus Games for injured veterans.

The series will focus on athletes who competed in the fifth Invictus Games, a sporting event founded by Prince Harry, in The Hague last month. Prince Harry has been a hands-on patron from the start and helped launch the first event in London in 2014.

The Independent has reached out to a representative of Archewell Productions for comment.