Meghan 'used' to promote The Gentlemen, friend claims
A friend of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex says her name was "used" to help sell the second series of The Gentlemen on Netflix. The claim was set out in reporting published on 18 October 2026. The friend told The Telegraph that people around the duchess believe the August casting rumours were useful publicity because the second run was not as strong as the first and a third series had already been ordered The Telegraph.
That is an allegation from an unnamed friend. It is not a statement from Netflix or from the duchess, and no confirmation or denial from either was included in the reports.
The August rumours moved quickly. First came reports that Meghan, 45, was in early talks to appear opposite Theo James in a future run of Guy Ritchie's crime series, a spin-off from his 2019 film about a cannabis empire. Then came reports of advanced discussions. Within 24 hours came reports that a deal was off the table.
A later account said she had spoken directly with Ritchie about a possible role and it did not work out. Actor Kaya Scodelario was then asked publicly about the idea of Meghan joining the cast. Author Tina Brown said separately that the reported casting was dropped after a backlash in Britain. Each of those remains a reported claim, not a confirmed casting.
James leads the show as a duke who inherits an estate tied to organised crime and becomes a ruthless boss himself. Scodelario and Ray Winstone return for the second run, according to Netflix's cast guide Netflix. Viewing figures for the second series were 500,000 down on the first, according to figures cited by The Telegraph.
Meghan is best known as an actor for seven years as Rachel Zane, a paralegal turned lawyer, in the US legal drama Suits. She and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex signed a contract with Netflix in 2020 to produce programmes and films, believed at the time to be worth about $100m (£75m) Hello!. Her lifestyle series With Love, Meghan has run for two series and a Christmas special. Reports say she is now reading scripts for television and film and is cautious about leaks to the press.
For fans, this leaves two threads to watch. One is whether an acting return actually lands. The other is how much noise a rumour can make, even when no part follows.
