Some staff who worked on Meghan Markle’s podcast required “long-term therapy” due to the experience of working with the Duchess of Sussex, according to reports. The podcast series Archetypes, which ran for 12 episodes in 2022 before Archewell Audio and Spotify ended their partnership, is said to have left lasting mental health impacts on those involved.
A source told Vanity Fair that Meghan was “really, really, really awful” and described her as “very painful” to work with. They added: “She’s constantly playing checkers – I’m not even going to say chess – but she’s just very aware of where everybody is on her board. And when you are not in, you are to be thrown to the wolves at any given moment.”.
The podcast aimed to “investigate, dissect and subvert the labels that try to hold women back” and featured high-profile guests such as Paris Hilton, Mariah Carey, and Serena Williams. Archetypes topped Spotify’s charts in several countries and won the People’s Choice Award for Best Podcast in 2022.
However, a source told Variety that Spotify had been expecting more content from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Meghan officially abandoned the project in 2023. In a joint statement, Archewell Audio and Spotify said they had “mutually agreed to part ways” and were “proud of the series we made together.”.
