Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are going into the new year with more expenses and money troubles than ever before and there’s even talk their Netflix deal could be at risk due to their latest flop, which has not surprisingly set off major alarm bells, a source exclusively tells In Touch. 

The Sussexes’ latest endeavor with the steaming giant, Polo, a tone-deaf five-part series that the U.K. publication The Guardian derided as an “unintentionally hilarious” profile of “the world’s stupidest sport,” missed the mark by a mile with most viewers worldwide.

With critics also almost universally panning the embarrassing feature, the insider says the couple’s $100 million deal could even be in jeopardy if the two can’t find a way to relate to viewers on a more honest level. While they’re “still hopeful that the show will gather momentum and prove the critics wrong,” this recent blunder, like most of their post-royal ventures, “is a nightmare.” 

“They tried so hard to give the network what they wanted, and that was more of a reality show feel than they initially envisioned, but they got on board and came up with a show that they feel hits that target but also has a lot of heart and depth,” the source explains, adding that unfortunately, “it doesn’t really matter what they think, it’s what Netflix bosses think.” 

“So, to hear these horrible rumors coming out that their deal might be at risk because the network isn’t happy is incredibly upsetting.” 

Brand expert Nick Ede corroborated the sentiment, telling DailyMail that this misstep could end up being the “nail in the coffin” for the Sussexes’ Netflix partnership, which they signed in 2020.

“The new polo documentary hasn’t received good reviews, and this is another foray into producing from Meghan and Harry [that hasn’t worked out],” he told the publication.

With the stakes higher than ever, Meghan’s new upcoming project, which will reportedly be about cooking and wellness, absolutely must succeed, as “their future and their income is very much dependent on this deal finishing out.” 

There are even “whispers that it might not,” as production after production fall flat with fans. The failure has “really hit them hard and Megan’s naturally very concerned.”

Beyond audiences, other producers and creators have been irked by the former-royals’ foray into television, with a second source previously telling In Touch, “Even among the professionals in the T.V. business, they see their mostly pointless Netflix shows as taking opportunities away from creators and talent who are T.V. professionals with legitimately strong ideas.” 

With multiple property purchases in the last few years, a jet-setting lifestyle and several new business ventures launched over the past few years, the first source says the Sussexes have “never had higher expenses than right now, not least because she’s been pumping so much money into her lifestyle brand relaunch.” 

“They’ve got very high expenses and massive plans to expand even further, so the last thing they need is to lose their deal at Netflix. It would be such a disaster.”