Prince Harry’s Invictus Games documentary has arrived on Hulu, in which the Duke of Sussex talks about his family and how important the games are to him.
In news that appears to be a slap in the face to rival streamer Netflix, with which it has a five-year deal, an unannounced one-off show began streaming on its Disney-owned rivals on Sunday.
Called Prince Harry’s Mission: Life, Family and the Invictus Games, it is based on interviews Harry gave to ABC News when he was in Whistler, Canada, promoting the games.
The one-episode show is an ‘ABC News special’. It includes his reflection: “I love my family” made on February 16 and Harry revealing that he was glad to have flown to be at King Charles’ side after his cancer diagnosis.
A senior Netflix source said he and his wife Meghan remain under contract with them, but the news seemed to take them by surprise.
An unannounced one-off ‘special’ with Prince Harry began streaming on Hulu on Sunday, in an apparent slap in the face to rival streamer Netflix, where he has a five-year deal.
Called Prince Harry’s Mission: Life, Family and the Invictus Games, the show is based on interviews Harry gave to ABC News when he was in Whistler, Canada, promoting the games. The couple is pictured on February 14, 2024.
Netflix representatives have been contacted for comment.
A senior television news producer tells me that Harry had to know about the use of the interview and had to sign a release form to allow ABC to turn it into a documentary for Hulu.
Speculation about the status of Harry and Meghan’s relationship with the streamer reached a fever pitch after they relaunched their businesses and charitable projects under a new ‘Sussex.com’ website – but failed to mention Netflix by name in the section. about Archewell productions.
Sources have told this newspaper that there is discontent on both sides over the Netflix deal that was signed at the end of 2020.
Although reported to be worth $100 million, the streamer is actually said to simply cover production company Archewell’s overhead expenses to the tune of around $3 million, with additional income dependent on the pair delivering projects.
So far, they have delivered the blockbuster Harry & Meghan Tell All, as well as a documentary about Invictus and their work, Heart of Invictus.
In the documentary, Prince Harry talks about his family and how important the Invictus Games are to him
A senior Netflix source said he and his wife Meghan remain under contract with them.
A film adaptation of the romance novel Meet Me At The Lake is also in the works, although there is no script yet and it is unclear if the pair have yet settled on a writer.
Executive Bela Bejaria said earlier this month that other projects, including a TV show and another documentary, were in the “early stages” of development.
He and Meghan are believed to have only received around $20 million from the streamer so far, in total, and a source close to the relationship says the Netflix deal is essentially a dead duck.
Earlier this month, Harry and Meghan traveled to Whistler, Canada, where the 2023 Invictus Games will be held, for wounded military men and women.
In an interview with Will Reeve for ABC News, which is repeated in the Hulu special, Harry said he quickly made plans to see his father as soon as he found out the King has cancer.
He said: ‘I got on a plane and went to see him as soon as I could. Look, I love my family. “I’m grateful for the fact that I was able to get on a plane and go see him and spend time with him.”
Sources say there is discontent on both sides over the Netflix deal, which was signed in late 2020.
Although it was reported to be worth $100 million, the streamer is said to simply cover production company Archewell’s overhead costs to the tune of around $3 million, with additional income dependent on the pair delivering the projects.
Harry, 39, declined to comment further on his father’s diagnosis, adding that he hopes to see Charles again soon and saying: “I have other trips planned which will take me through the UK or back to the UK as well. I’ll stop by and see my family as much as I can.
The duke had not seen his father, 75, since the coronation last May. The visit lasted about half an hour before King Charles and Queen Camilla left for Sandringham in Norfolk. Harry spent the night in a hotel before leaving for California, where he now lives.
When asked about the possibility of Charles’ illness having a reunifying effect on his own family, Harry responded: “Yes, I’m sure,” and reflected on what he has seen firsthand among the families of Invictus athletes. .
“In all of these families, I see day by day, once again, the strength of the family unit coming together,” Harry said. “So yes, I think any illness brings families together. “I see it again and again and that makes me very happy.”
The Invictus Games launched in 2014. They are inspired by the Warrior Games, an annual event hosted by the US Department of Defense, which Harry attended in 2013.
The first games were held in London in 2014 and have since been held in Orlando, Toronto, Sydney, Dusseldorf and The Hague.
He spoke to the ABC team at the One Year to Go events. It will be the first time that the competition includes winter sports.
In addition to traditional sports programming such as indoor rowing, sitting volleyball, swimming, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby, the Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler will include alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, skeleton skiing and wheelchair curling.
More than 500 competitors from more than two dozen countries are expected to compete during the Games, which will be held from February 8 to 16, 2025.