Daily Beast:
‘I was hiking Ireland’s second-highest mountain when my phone pinged.
Meghan’s team were furiously spinning: As Ever and Netflix were breaking up, and Meghan was almost as delighted as she was when Netflix failed to renew their massive, all-in production deal.
I wasn’t sure if the altitude was making me ditzy, but there seemed to be a mad statement from Meghan saying she was thrilled to now “stand on her own,” while Netflix had an even madder claim that “it was always intended” that Meghan would “continue independently.”
Shades of George Costanza’s, “It’s not you, it’s me,” maybe?
I couldn’t help recalling that on Feb. 18, 2025, when she announced the brand’s rebrand from American Riviera Orchard to As Ever, Meghan said Netflix was “not just” her show partner but also her “partner in my business,” and called that “huge.”
In coverage published May 27, 2025, Meghan said she and Netflix’s consumer-products side were on calls “daily,” working through “product development, SKUs, and inventory,” and looking at manufacturers and suppliers as the brand expanded.
Also stretching the bounds of credulity on all this is the fact that Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos just this time last year described As Ever as “a big discovery model” for the company. People magazine, commenting on Sarandos’s remarks at the time, said Netflix’s Sussex arrangements were aimed at “multi-year collaborations.”
All this, as well as basic business principles, makes nonsense of the claim that they only intended to partner for a year and then split.
Let’s be honest, the streaming giant is unlikely to have walked away from its partnership with Meghan’s lifestyle brand if it was all going swimmingly.
As Ever was supposed to create a virtuous circle with her lifestyle series “With Love, Meghan,” but Netflix canned it after two seasons and poor reviews.
Meghan’s team are now briefing that the break-up happened because Netflix was too “cautious” and Meghan wants to expand overseas.
A source in Meghan’s camp told The Sun: “Meghan is still on good terms with the Netflix team and close personal friends with Ted (Sarandos) so hasn’t wanted to upset him, but is very happy to have full control of the company… Netflix have been a good partner, but she’s wanted to go global with the brand for some time.”
But the truth is that Netflix seems to have little appetite to keep its cart hitched to Meghan’s pony.‘