Meghan Markle Netflix Show: With Love, Meghan panned by Hollywood bible Variety

By Victoria Ward

The Duchess of Sussex‘s new Netflix show has been panned by Variety, the Hollywood trade bible.

The publication said that With Love, Meghan existed “as a sort of celebration of all things Duchess of Sussex”, adding that, as with her previous media offerings, “no amount of praise seems enough”.

Its scathing review of the eight-part lifestyle and cookery series, released on Tuesday, suggested that the Duchess did not have the natural savvy or competence of doyennes in this field, such as Martha Stewart or Ina Garten, and mocked her comparatively vacuous comments and creations.

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“The show plays out like a forced march, one in which Meghan’s guests must, as the price of getting to share an afternoon in a made-for-TV kitchen with her, praise her first,” it said.

Listing the dizzying array of “little projects” the busy Duchess completed in the first episode alone, from harvesting honey to making candles and pasta, the review added: “The grind, for a star for whom this show may represent a last stand at holding on to her place in the public eye, never stops.

“And yet all of this effort is carried across in an on-camera attitude that resembles Meghan’s on-camera wardrobe: Well-tailored and beige.”

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The publication said the Duchess came across as a “perpetual A student”, desperate to impress her guests.

Such a scathing review from a US publication that holds so much sway in Hollywood will come as a huge blow to the Duchess, whose future earning power relies heavily on the show’s success.

Variety was not the only prominent US publication to criticise the show. Time magazine, which four years ago named the Sussexes among its 100 most influential people of 2021, suggested that the Duchess came across as bland.

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The Sussexes had promised, its review noted, to show the reality behind the royal veneer, but had become too focused on their own “rigid propaganda machine”.

“With each glossy new programme, podcast and lifestyle brand, the promise of authenticity has given way to an impersonal performance of perfection,” it said.

“With Love, Meghan might be the most performative example to date.”

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Time said that the Duchess’s “vibe” on the show was “high-end millennial influencer”— “a supermum in earth-tone cashmere and designer denim” with impeccable taste.

“The irony of their endless self-portraiture … is that the more they say about themselves, the less real they seem,” the review went on, suggesting that there was surely something remarkable about a woman who had the strength of will to extricate herself, her children, and her husband from the royal institution.

“With Love, Meghan is a dusting of flower sprinkles that can’t hide the blandness of the cookie – a polite but distant dispatch from a rented kitchen down the road in lieu of truly welcoming us into her life,” it concluded.

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Meanwhile, the Hollywood Reporter only served to fan the flames as it said the show “lacked relatability” and came across as “an oddly timed peek into how the other half lives”.

Its review highlighted the cost of living crisis, and socio-political environment, noting that it was “hard to see the lifestyle programme as relevant or to anyone except Meghan and Harry”.

“Attempts at being aspirational, like remarking how sweet it is to build a balloon arch by hand for her kids’ parties rather than hire someone else to do it, fall flat when there’s no honest conversation about the difficulties of motherhood with fellow mum guests – an element that would better ground the series for viewers than the overuse of edible flower sprinkles,” it said.

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Vogue magazine was slightly kinder. It said that the Duchess was at her most interesting when making dishes that any other similarly self-taught person would cook for their family or friends.

Hated baking

But it said that at other times, the viewer was left wondering why she was teaching us things such as cake decorating when she admitted she hated baking, or donuts, which she said she had never made before.

The candle-making exercise was considered so laborious “you’ll be thrilled to hand your credit card over the next time you’re at a Diptyque”, while Meghan’s attempt to make a balloon arch left the reviewer “equally de-influenced”.

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“I’m not exactly sure what defines Meghan Markle,” the writer concluded, albeit failing to note that she was now a Sussex.

The show is thought to be Meghan’s last throw of the dice with Netflix.

The Sussexes signed a five-year deal with the streaming giant in 2020, which was said to be worth $US100 million (approx. $63.3 million).

Nine Entertainment Co (the publisher of this website) owns and operates the streaming service Stan.

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