The past year wasn’t exactly a banner one for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. In January, Harry’s memoir, Spare, sent shock waves across the pond, deepening the rift between the prince and members of the royal family. In May, the Sussexes were accused of exaggerating claims they’d been involved in a “near catastrophic car chase” with the paparazzi in NYC, and in June, it was revealed Meghan’s short-lived podcast, “Archetypes,” had been canceled and the couple’s partnership with Spotify had been dissolved. An executive at the media company labeled them “grifters.” They were mocked on South Park and Family Guy as rumors of money woes and marital tension picked up steam. Before the year was out, they made one publication’s list of 2023’s “biggest losers.”
But it looks like 2024 is already off to a better start. In mid-December, Harry saw a landmark victory in one of his phone hacking lawsuits against a group of British newspapers (he was awarded $180,000). Sources tell Us lucrative offers have been flooding in for him and his wife and that, despite being tested, their marriage is stronger than ever.
“Harry and Meghan are in extremely high demand,” says one source, noting that the duo are being courted for speaking engagements, business collaborations and entertainment gigs. They’re also thinking of moving from Montecito, California, to L.A. to get closer to the action in Hollywood. Adds a second source: “Harry and Meghan think 2024 will be the year of redemption.”
It’s an exciting time for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. According to the second source, Meghan’s team has been turning down offers left and right. “They’ve actually been shocked by how popular she is,” says the source. “Her team has never seen anything like it.” She has a few projects pending, and the source says the Suits alum may also be working on a “big media deal.”
The second source says Meghan is being approached about everything from film roles to multimillion-dollar endorsement deals with fashion and beauty brands. But her focus remains on philanthropy and giving back. Harry, 39, and Meghan, 42, launched the Archewell Foundation in 2020 with a mission to facilitate cultural change; the source says Meghan is currently “laser-focused” on the foundation, and that “everything she considers must fall in line with an Archewell initiative.” On December 11, the organization announced Meghan had debuted the Welcome Project, which supports “women-led programming for recently resettled Afghan women.”
There’s also talk she’s resurrecting The Tig, the lifestyle blog she ran prior to marrying Harry in 2018. While the second source maintains that conversations around the blog are “ongoing,” the first source says the plan is to relaunch The Tig “bigger and better” than before.
A return to acting is a “never say never” possibility, too, says the first source, especially given the recent resurgence in popularity of Meghan’s long-running legal drama, Suits, after it hit Netflix in July. Sources say there’s talk of a reunion similar to the Friends special that aired in 2021.
“Meghan’s been tight-lipped about potentially revisiting the series, but there’s hope that if the timing is right, something can be worked out,” says the first source. Adds the second: “Meghan would consider it. There have already been discussions.”
But, the source adds, Meghan is currently “100 percent more interested in directing and being behind the camera.” In 2020, she and Harry signed a deal with Netflix worth a reported $100 million. So far, Archewell has produced the couple’s Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan, and Harry’s Heart of Invictus series. This August, they acquired the rights to the bestseller Meet Me at the Lake and will be adapting the romance novel for the streamer. “I can’t imagine a more perfect partnership,” the book’s author, Carley Fortune, said of the news.
Harry is just as busy as his wife with another book on the horizon. He signed a four-book deal with Penguin Random House, the publisher behind Spare, in 2021. “He still has so much more to say,” says the second source, who clarifies that — despite Spare breaking first-day nonfiction sales records for the publishing company — Harry isn’t interested in writing another tell-all.
“Harry and Meghan want to go in a different direction. They’ve said what they needed to say with regard to the royals,” the second source says. “They’re moving on.”
They’re both being highly selective about what they say yes to. “There’s this perception that Harry and Meghan have been snubbed in the entertainment industry,” says the first source. “But the way they see it, they’re choosing quality over quantity instead of grabbing every opportunity that comes their way.”
They’ve taken the bumps in the road in stride. “Harry and Meghan feel like everything with them is always blown out of proportion,” says the second source. “They try not to let the noise affect their lives.” If anything, the criticism has only brought them closer together, the source adds: “They are stronger than ever.”
When they’re not working, they enjoy date nights at their $14 million Montecito home and being hands-on parents to Archie, 4, and Lilibet, 2. “They try not to rely too heavily on nannies,” says the first source. “Harry and Meghan spend plenty of time outdoors, hiking with the dogs or kicking a soccer ball around with the kids. They also like to host dinner parties at the house and just kick back and binge-watch shows.”
The couple will be spending Christmas at home in Montecito with friends and Meghan’s mom, Doria. “They’ll be cooking, playing games and swapping gifts,” says the first source. “They have a tough time trying not to spoil the kids too much!” (During a recent event, Meghan told the crowd that despite son Archie’s pleas for a pricey camera, he wouldn’t be getting expensive photography equipment for Christmas.)
Meanwhile, over in the U.K., Kate and William will head to the royal family’s Sandringham country estate with their three kids for some traditional festivities with King Charles III and the rest of the clan.
As Us previously reported, Harry and Meghan reached out to King Charles to wish him a happy birthday in mid-November, but sources say the relationship between Harry and the other royals — including Prince William and Princess Kate — remains strained. “There’s no communication,” says the second source. According to the first source, Harry “was pleased he connected with his father, and he and Meghan want to have more contact with the royal family as 2024 unfolds. They’re hoping things heal with time.”
