Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s first theatrical feature as executive producers has arrived, and the opening numbers gave their critics fresh material. Now one prominent royal commentator is urging a response that sounds almost counterintuitive for two of the most watched people in the world: go quiet.
Cookie Queens, a documentary following four young Girl Scouts through the pressure and pageantry of cookie-selling season, opened in select theaters on Aug. 7 as the couple’s first feature-length production. It entered at No. 15 with a per-screen average of $735, according to Box Office Pro.
The result wasn’t a public implosion, but it was modest enough to sharpen a bigger question hanging over Harry and Meghan’s post-royal business life. Kinsey Schofield, host of YouTube’s Kinsey Schofield Unfiltered, thinks the answer is not another burst of announcements.
Her prescription is narrower: step back, choose one project carefully, and let the work, not the celebrity around it, do the talking.
Two Revenue Figures, One Film
The full financial picture for Cookie Queens is still developing, and two circulating totals don’t describe the same thing.
The Numbers reported a cumulative domestic gross of $513,148. Another figure, about $354,000 from 446 theaters, appears to capture an earlier point in the run rather than the same endpoint. The distinction matters because the two numbers have circulated side by side, even though they reflect different moments in the film’s theatrical performance.
There are also important blanks. The production budget has not been reported, nor have Harry and Meghan’s financial stake or the total marketing spend. That makes any declaration that Cookie Queens is an outright financial loss premature. Its select release also makes a clean comparison with wide-release studio films difficult.
Still, the opening itself was soft. A documentary backed by two globally recognizable names debuted at No. 15 with a $735 per-screen average. That sets up Schofield’s sharper argument: the film may not be a disaster, but it does little to settle questions about what Harry and Meghan’s celebrity can reliably deliver at the box office.
Less Talking, More Execution
Schofield’s advice goes further than the “disappear” framing suggests.
“I would tell them to disappear professionally for a little while,” Schofield told Page Six, “dramatically reduce the number of announcements, and identify one genuinely compelling project with experienced people around them who know how to execute it.”
Her criticism is less about Cookie Queens in isolation than about the couple’s wider business footprint. In her view, they have moved across too many categories without first building undeniable authority in one.
“When you try to establish authority in every category simultaneously, you can end up establishing authority in none of them,” she added. “Pick a lane, become good at it, and allow success to rebuild credibility.”
Then came the line that captures her argument most cleanly: “They need to stop treating their celebrity as the product and start creating products strong enough to survive without their celebrity.”
Her three-word summary was even blunter: “Less talking, fewer announcements and more execution.”
Six Years of Strategy, All in the Rearview
The film’s debut carries weight because of what came before it.
After stepping back from frontline royal duties in 2020, Harry and Meghan built Archewell around a broad media strategy. That September, they signed a multiyear deal with Netflix for documentaries, feature films and series. In December, they announced a Spotify partnership through Archewell Audio.
Spotify produced one full season of Meghan’s Archetypes podcast and a holiday special before both sides mutually agreed to part ways in 2023. Page Six reported that the deal was worth approximately $20 million.
The Netflix relationship also changed shape. The original arrangement later became a first-look deal, meaning Netflix would get first consideration of Archewell projects rather than maintaining the same broad exclusive slate. Then, this past March, Netflix and Meghan’s As Ever lifestyle brand ended their collaboration, with Netflix saying Meghan would develop the brand independently going forward.
That history gives Cookie Queens more significance than one documentary might otherwise carry. It arrives after six years in which the Sussexes have produced real projects and landed major partnerships, while several of those partnerships have since narrowed, changed direction or ended.
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Famous Isn’t the Same as Bankable
Fame, it turns out, doesn’t automatically come with a loyal audience.
Harry and Meghan remain among the most covered public figures in the world. Their names can still generate headlines almost instantly. What remains less settled is whether that attention consistently transfers to the projects themselves.
That distinction is at the center of Schofield’s critique. She is asking whether viewers will keep showing up when the royal connection is not the main attraction. “There are only so many times you can tell audiences why you left the royal family,” she said to Page Six. “If they want longevity in entertainment, they have to prove people are interested in their taste, ideas and storytelling when the monarchy isn’t the hook.”
Schofield also connected the business question to Harry’s relationship with his father. “I also don’t think it’s a coincidence that we’re seeing renewed efforts toward reconciliation with King Charles at a moment when Harry and Meghan need to rebuild their credibility. I suspect that they understand that their fractured relationship with the royal family has become a professional liability.”
That is Schofield’s assessment, not a confirmed Archewell position. But it adds another layer to her argument: even as Harry and Meghan try to establish an identity outside royal life, the royal relationship remains difficult to separate from how their work is discussed.
The One Thing the Advice Can’t Supply
The advice comes with no project attached.
Neither Harry, Meghan nor anyone from Archewell has publicly responded to Schofield’s assessment or to the film’s reported performance. Earlier this month, the couple attended David Foster’s foundation gala in Canada, but the appearance offered no obvious clue about their next professional move.
“Success is one of the most effective reputation-management strategies in Hollywood,” Schofield said. “Make something undeniable and suddenly the conversation changes.”
Meanwhile, Cookie Queens is still in its theatrical run, so its final gross could move the picture somewhat. But the larger test will come after the totals stop changing. Harry and Meghan have no shortage of recognition. The next challenge is whether one piece of work can become compelling enough that the audience conversation starts with the project itself.
If Harry and Meghan stepped back and returned with a single focused project, what kind of content would actually get you to watch?
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