Meghan Markle Signs With WME to Build Business Enterprise
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, has signed for representation with WME, Variety can report exclusively.
The signing represents a crown jewel for WME, one might say, as numerous agency rivals have tried to land the public figure formerly known as Meghan Markle since she and husband Prince Harry moved to California in 2020.
Her team at WME will include power agent turned Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel, Brad Slater, the rep and brand architect within the agency for Dwayne Johnson, and longtime Serena Williams agent Jill Smoller. Additionally, WME will assume representation of Archewell, her and Prince Harry’s content creation label. Film and television production, brand partnerships, and overall business-building will be explored. Acting will not be an area of focus.
The relationship signifies that Meghan is looking to zero in on her enterprise efforts. Her lifelong advocacy for women, mothers and girls will remain a thread in her professional work. In her Variety cover story last year, she discussed her ambitions around Archewell original content (she and Harry are currently engaged in a deal with Netflix).
“So much of how my husband and I see things is through our love story. I think that’s what people around the world connected to, especially with our wedding. People love love. I’m not excluded in that sentiment,” Meghan said. “For scripted, we want to think about how we can evolve from that same space and do something fun. It doesn’t always have to be so serious. Like a good rom-com. Don’t we miss them? I miss them so much.”
Thus far, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have produced two docuseries with Netflix, including “Harry & Meghan.” That series represents the most-streamed documentary premiere in Netflix history, with 81.5 million minutes watched in its first week.
Meghan is a global icon, topping lists such as TIME Magazine’s Most Influential People, The Financial Times’ 25 Most Influential Women, Variety Power of Women, and British Vogue’s Vogue 25.
Source: Variety
