Meghan Markle has reportedly signed a voiceover deal with Disney in a bid to raise funds for a wildlife charity.
According to reports, the Duchess of Sussex will do the voiceover in exchange for a donation to Elephants Without Borders, an organisation that helps track animals and protect them from poachers.
It comes after Meghan and Prince Harry revealed they would be stepping down as ‘senior’ royals and would work towards being financially independent. Now, it’s suggested the former Suits actress could be returning to Hollywood in a bid to achieve it.
Experts have predicted that, if the pair decide to become ambassadors for global brands such as Apple, Harry and Meghan could earn tens of millions each year.
According to The Times, senior members of the royal family had accused Harry and Meghan of already signing a deal with ‘firms including Disney’ before Christmas, which of course came before the big announcement.
Now, the Disney deal appears to be confirmed, according to reports in The Sun.
Harry and Meghan surprised people all over the world on January 8, when they released the statement revealing they would be stepping down as ‘senior’ members of the royal family.
‘After many months of reflection and internal discussions’, they wrote on Instagram, ‘we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution.’
Buckingham Palace later responded with a statement saying: ‘Discussions with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are at an early stage. We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through.’
The Queen was said to be ‘disappointed’ by Harry and Meghan’s news, with BBC News reporting no other members of the royal family were consulted before the statement was released on Instagram.
Disney honoured Harry and Meghan with a water colour Winnie the Pooh animation in May, to celebrate the birth of the royal baby.
The couple later announced that Disney had also made a significant donation to their wildlife charity work.
Harry and Meghan’s announcement could possibly have been preempted following the Duchess’ candid interview with ITV News’ royal editor Chris Ship, in which she said she was finding adjusting to royal life ‘hard’.
She said:
When I first met my now-husband my friends were really happy because I was so happy. But my British friends said to me, ‘I’m sure he’s great but you shouldn’t do it because the British tabloids will destroy your life’.
Harry said he didn’t want a ‘repeat of the past’, following the paparazzi harassment suffered by his mother, Princess Diana.
Here’s to wishing the royal couple well in their new chapter.
If you have a story you want to tell send it to UNILAD via story@unilad.com
Emma Rosemurgey is an NCTJ trained Journalist who started her career by producing The Royal Rosemurgey newspaper in 2004, which kept her family up to date with the goings on of her sleepy north east village. She graduated from the University of Central Lancashire in Preston and started her career in regional newspapers before joining Tyla (formerly Pretty 52) in 2017, and progressing onto UNILAD in 2019.