Meghan Markle in early talks for role in Guy Ritchie's Netflix series The Gentlemen

Early talks for a scripted return

Representatives for Meghan Markle are exploring a potential role for the Duchess of Sussex in the third season of the Netflix crime series The Gentlemen, created by filmmaker Guy Ritchie. The discussions remain at an early exploratory stage, and neither side has finalized a binding agreement for her appearance. Netflix has not yet officially commissioned a third season for the television franchise, and both the streaming platform and co-producer Toff Guy Films have declined to comment on the negotiations. Script development for the prospective third season is currently in progress, leaving the character's exact arc and the number of episodes undetermined. If concluded, the casting would represent Markle's most substantial scripted acting commitment since stepping away from television.

Career background and return to screen

Markle previously spent seven seasons starring as paralegal Rachel Zane on the USA Network legal drama series Suits, created by Aaron Korsh. She filmed her final episodes in late 2017 as her relationship with Prince Harry became more serious, stepping back from professional screen work ahead of their royal wedding in 2018. While Markle stated in 2022 that she had left acting behind to pursue new projects, she recently filmed a cameo appearance portraying herself in the Amazon MGM comedy film Close Personal Friends. That feature, which co-stars actors Lily Collins and Jack Quaid, marks her first on-screen acting role in seven years and is scheduled for release on the streaming service in 2027.

Archewell partnership with Netflix

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex established an ongoing commercial relationship with Netflix in 2020 through an exclusive production agreement under Archewell Productions. The agreement encompassed the development of documentaries, docuseries, feature films, scripted programs, and children's content. Their output included the 2022 docuseries Harry & Meghan, which recorded one of the most-watched documentary debuts on the platform, alongside the 2022 release Live to Lead, the 2023 documentary Heart of Invictus, and the 2024 sports series Polo. In 2025, the couple extended their creative collaboration with Netflix by signing a multi-year first-look agreement for upcoming film and television projects.

Production logistics and British relocation

The Gentlemen television adaptation builds on Guy Ritchie's 2019 film of the same name, depicting aristocrat Eddie Horniman as he inherits a family estate and discovers a cannabis empire managed by the Glass crime family operating on the property. The first season spent three weeks as Netflix's most-watched English-language series worldwide, and a second season starring Theo James will premiere on September 3, 2026. The production shoots primarily in the English countryside, utilizing the Badminton estate in Gloucestershire, which sits seven miles from Highgrove House, the private country home of King Charles III. The casting discussions coincide with plans for Harry and Markle to return to the United Kingdom after more than six years in the United States with their children, seven-year-old Prince Archie and five-year-old Princess Lilibet.