Meghan Markle’s Hollywood relaunch is ‘not going to plan’ and may already have been scuppered because the royal race row sparked by Omid Scobie’s new book could make her ‘too hot to handle’, experts told MailOnline today.
The Duchess of Sussex recently signed with William Morris Endeavor (WME) mega-agent Ari Emanuel whose clients include Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, tennis star Serena Williams, among other A-Listers. Brand and culture expert Nick Ede told MailOnline today that Endgame could be as dangerous for her career as Spare – her husband’s memoir – was for Prince Harry, claiming her representatives in LA will be worried she has ‘tarnished her reputation and could potentially damage the reputation of her agency’. Mr Ede believes Meghan could soon become ‘too hot to handle’ after two members of Harry’s family were named as being at the centre of the race row allegations in a Dutch version of the book. He also claimed that the silence from the Sussexes since the book came out makes Meghan look ‘guilty by association’, despite vehement claims by Mr Scobie, who is an ally of the actress, and her friends that she had nothing to do with the book.
Mr Ede said: ‘The book written by Omid Scobie is potentially a career incendiary device for Meghan. Just as Harry’s own goal of a book has proved for him, the new book by Scobie unfortunately has fuelled a fire which many had thought would die down. ‘The issue for a huge Hollywood agent is that they will find it hard to navigate the career of Meghan fearing that more will come out over time and that, with court cases looming from her sister and potentially her father, she has tarnished her reputation and could potentially damage the reputation of her agency’. He added: ‘Meghan in the right hands is a superpower – the world’s most famous woman – and on paper she could make millions for herself and for whomever represents her. But she’s proving to be too hot to handle and, even though she hasn’t said anything about the book, she’s guilty by association and this is damaging for her and others as she plots her next career move’. PR guru Mark Borkowski told MailOnline that Meghan’s post-Spare relaunch ‘is clearly not going to plan’. The New York Post has reported claims that WME has been left ‘horrified’ about the potential damage Mr Scobie’s book may have done to the Sussexes’ rebrand. An insider also told the Daily Mirror that WME are ‘exasperated’ by the ‘never-ending scandal’ around the Sussexes. Royal expert Angela Levin told GB News: ‘They [WME] said they were “horrified”, that can’t just be about the two names that were mentioned, it must be about their client, Meghan.
‘It seems to me that they will think very carefully what they do next. I have never heard such a well-known agency be clear about how they feel.’ Scobie has come under fire after a Dutch translation of the book appeared to accuse King Charles and the Princess of Wales of racism after Meghan Markle claimed that ‘concerns’ had been raised about the skin colour of her son Archie in her bombshell Oprah interview in 2021. MailOnline last week revealed how a Dutch translator insisted that she had been sent a manuscript which named the two senior royals. The Times later reported that Scobie’s British publisher had sent a draft copy to the Dutch translator which contained the names. Scobie has now insisted that he wrote his book ‘at lighting speed’ – despite first announcing in July last year that he was ‘working on a brand new book’ about the Royal Family. Several months later, in December last year, he announced the books’ title, Endgame. The Royal Family put on a united front this week amid the fallout from Scobie’s race row by attending the Buckingham Palace Christmas Diplomatic Reception. The King is expected to consult with his son Prince William to discuss the controversy, with Palace officials understood to be ‘considering all options’ including legal action. The Sussexes have not commented publicly on the row, but a source close to Meghan denied leaking the names to Scobie.
