Meghan Markle has postponed the premiere of her Netflix show.
Originally set to come out this Wednesday, ”With Love, Meghan” has now been pushed to early March. According to the streaming giant, this move was 鈥渁t the request of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and with the full support of Netflix.鈥
The reason for this doesn鈥檛 take a Machiavellian public relations strategist or network insider to decode. Simply being a fellow human watching the ongoing horror of the California wildfires unfold will do.
To release a show centred around the delights of the home 鈥 a Californian home, at that 鈥 would be the height of insensitivity. Something that Meghan, who’s already received a pile-on of knee-jerk “anything she touches we loathe on principal” hate for the show, would be particularly sensitive to. Releasing a show into a news cycle dominated by this wildfire disaster and with Hollywood almost entirely on pause would make little sense.聽
鈥淚鈥檓 thankful to my partners at Netflix for supporting me in delaying the launch, as we focus on the needs of those impacted by the wildfires in my home State of California,鈥 said Meghan in a press release that called the lifestyle show 鈥渁 heartfelt tribute to the beauty of Southern California.鈥
Meghan Markle, right, speaks with Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo, centre, and a man whose home was destroyed in the L.A. fires.
Ethan Swope/APAs of Monday morning, the wildfires in Los Angeles have been burning for a week. Twenty-four people are confirmed to have died, with the death toll expected to increase. The blazes have destroyed more than 12,000 structures, reducing entire neighbourhoods to smouldering ruins. Famous names 鈥 Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, Paris Hilton, Anna Faris, Mandy Moore, John Goodman, Mel Gibson 鈥 are among the thousands, many who might not have the same resources to rebuild, reckoning with the loss of their homes.
The state鈥檚 governor has predicted it will be the 鈥渨orst natural disaster in U.S. history.鈥 More than 100,000 people have been evacuated so far, with officials warning that all 10 million people who live in L.A. county could potentially be ordered to leave their homes as high winds return after a respite over the weekend.
While Meghan doesn鈥檛 live in Los Angeles anymore 鈥 she and Prince Harry live in Montecito, about 90 minutes up the coast and not currently directly impacted by these wildfires 鈥 she was born and raised in the city.
In addition to moving her show premiere to March 4, Meghan has responded to the L.A. fires several other ways: according to People, she and Harry have 鈥渙pened up their home鈥 鈥 reported to have 14 bedrooms 鈥 to friends and family who have had to evacuate. (Among those, you might reasonably assume, is Meghan鈥檚 mother, Doria.)
On Friday, she and Harry 鈥 both wearing masks, apparently as much to be as incognito as to protect against the bad air quality 鈥 helped out at a relief operation handing out supplies to people impacted by the fire in Pasadena. (It was organized by World Central Kitchen, a humanitarian agency founded by chef Jos茅 Andr茅s, a friend of the couple who鈥檚 also worked with Prince William on his Earthshot Prize.)
They served food and offered comfort where they could: there is video of Meghan embracing someone and a story circulating about how Prince Harry, when one of the fire victims told him he felt like eating a doughnut, found him one despite the pastry not being on offer. 鈥淚f you ever run for anything, I鈥檒l vote for you,鈥 the man said when he got the doughnut.
鈥淭hey want to be as helpful as they can be 鈥 They took the time to meet the people that are affected and spent time. They鈥檙e just very caring people who are concerned for their friends and neighbours,鈥 Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo, who was with Meghan and Harry on Friday, told a local news channel.
The couple, he added, told him that they were there to 鈥渨ork,鈥 and 鈥渘o one knew they were serving food with masks.鈥
In a more official capacity, the couple are also using their website to share a list of ways you can help people impacted by the fires, including places to donate goods or money.
Not everyone has appreciated Meghan and Harry’s contributions, however. Actor Justine Batemen, best known for playing Mallory on the 1980s sitcom “Family Ties,” has been particularly vocal.
“Meghan Markle and Harry are no better than ambulance chasers,” she wrote on X, replying to a video of the couple as they seem to say their goodbyes to officials at the Pasadena relief station. (Tellingly, the video was posted by an anonymous account, Harry’s Grey Suit, that often traffics in writing trollishly and hatefully about Meghan.) “What a repulsive ‘photo op’ they achieved. They are ‘touring the damage’? Are they politicians now? They don’t live here; they are tourists. Disaster Tourists.”
To join the conversation set a first and last name in your user profile.
Sign in or register for free to join the Conversation