Netflix Canceled Meghan Markle’s Show Before It Even Premiered

Meghan Markle’s animated series will no longer be moving forward on Netflix. This past spring, Deadline reported that the streaming service canceled Markle’s animated series Pearl. The show was due to be the first animated series for Archewell Productions, the company that Markle and her husband, Prince Harry, set up at Netflix in late 2020. 

Pearl, which was created by the Duchess of Sussex, was originally announced last summer. Markle was set to executive produce the series alongside David Furnish, Carolyn Soper, Liz Garbus, and Dan Cogan. Amanda Rynda was tapped to be the showrunner and one of the executive producers. Pearl, a working title, was set to follow a 12-year-old girl who finds inspiration from historical figures throughout history. At the time that the project was first announced, Markle released a statement in which she expressed her excitement about the animated series. 

“Like many girls her age, our heroine Pearl is on a journey of self-discovery as she tries to overcome life’s daily challenges,” her statement read. “I’m thrilled that Archewell Productions, partnered with the powerhouse platform of Netflix and these incredible producers, will together bring you this new animated series, which celebrates extraordinary women throughout history. David Furnish and I have been eager to bring this special series to light, and I am delighted we are able to announce it today.”

Alas, Pearl will not be headed to series at Netflix, Deadline noted that the streaming service nixed the project while it was still in the development stage. Additionally, the publication reported that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s other projects under the Netflix umbrella, including their documentary series House of Invictus, are up in the air. Even though there was some major star power behind Pearl, it wasn’t immune to Netflix’s latest trend of cancellations. 

Pearl isn’t the only animated series that has been canceled by Netflix in recent weeks. The streaming service also put an end to Dino Daycare and Boons and Curses. Of course, these cancellations aren’t limited to Netflix’s animated content. Recently, shows such as Raising Dion and Space Force were canceled, both of which will be ending after two seasons. Raising Dion star Sammi Haney shared the news with fans on social media, writing, “Sad to say that Raising Dion is CANCELED [sic] Thank you for all of the amazing support we got from all of our wonderful fans!”