Is Meghan Markle Returning to Acting or Hollywood?

Getty Prince Harry and Meghan react after their visit to Canada House in January 2020.

Meghan Markle is returning to the acting industry, but is there any chance she might return to Hallmark too? So far, there aren’t any indications that her interests might lean in the direction of Hallmark movies like they did in the past. But she has announced concrete plans to return to the acting industry — just in a very different role than before.

They Signed a Deal with Netflix

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have signed a multiyear deal with Netflix, The New York Times reported. After they moved back to California, they signed the Netflix deal for their new production company. They’ll be making children’s programming, scripted shows, documentaries, movies, and more.

In a statement, they said: “Our focus will be on creating content that informs but also gives hope. As new parents, making inspirational family programming is also important to us… reach will help us share impactful content that unlocks action.”

Although “inspirational family programming” certainly sounds like what Hallmark provides, the couple is exclusive to Netflix.

They also signed a speaking deal with Harry Walker Agency, who also represents the Obamas.

Meghan Markle Doesn’t Plan to Return to Acting

A representative of Markle shared that she doesn’t plan to return to acting at all, although she and Harry might appear on camera for their documentaries, The New York Times reported in mid-February.

In September, Netflix co-CEO Reed Hastings also confirmed that she wasn’t considering acting in a Netflix project, E Online reported.

Hastings said: “The real focus for them is on being producers and on building that production capacity. That’s the key thing is they’ve developed a great eye for story, and we’ll be working with them on that basis.”

This ended rumors sparked in August 2020 when Express reported that director Paul Feig said he would sign Markle up for a movie right away if she were interested. In March 2020, Marie Claire reported that Markle might return to acting that fall and had talked to several agents in Canada. However, those rumors all proved to not be true.

She did provide voiceover content for the Disney+ movie Elephant. Harry is also planning to co-produce a documentary with Oprah for Apple about mental health.

Markle Starred in 2 Hallmark Movies

Although she was most recently known for Suits, Markle also starred in two Hallmark movies.

In Dater’s Handbook, which aired in 2016, Markle played Cassandra Brand, a business owner with a nice boyfriend, George (played by Jonathan Scarfe). She ultimately breaks up with him and meets Kristoffer Polaha (as Robert) at a wedding.

Markle also starred in When Sparks Fly in 2014. She portrayed Amy Peterson, who is dating a guy named Hank, portrayed by Christopher Jacot. But they break up when she gets a dream job offer in Chicago. The movie then jumps ahead seven years, when she’s assigned a story about her parents’ fireworks business. She’s dating a big-city guy named Phil (portrayed by Lochlyn Munro) and goes back to her hometown to discover that her best friend (played by Kristina Pesic) is now engaged to her ex-boyfriend.