Plans for the phased rollout of “The Gentlemen” Season 2 had been in the works for months. Netflix‘s Sept. 3 launch date was set with all the usual components in place for one of the streamer’s starry dramas: a trailer, a Season 3 renewal announcement, a junket, a press conference and a red-carpet premiere at a historic London venue followed by a glamorous afterparty — the perfect place to celebrate the latest installment of Guy Ritchie’s high-octane series about dukes and drug dealers.
But in a case of life imitating art, the show’s entire publicity strategy was inadvertently wrecked by a real-life aristocrat, after reports leaked that Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, was being eyed for a role in the series. Just days ahead of Netflix’s long-planned release of a full-length trailer for the new season, in tandem with an announcement the show had been renewed, the leak dominated the news cycle for 24 hours. Then came a new report claiming her role had been canned due to the “backlash.”
So what on Earth happened? And, more importantly, what’s actually true?
Early Friday morning, a little-known Australian royal reporter called Bronte Coy claimed during a segment on Sky News Australia that Meghan, Duchess of Sussex was planning to “return to acting” and it was partly for this reason she and husband Prince Harry were relocating to the U.K. While Coy was, well, coy on details about the supposed project — whether it was a film or a TV show, a cameo role or series regular — she was adamant “there is a role in the works,” and that Meghan was about to sign on.
