EXCLUSIVE: Prince William WON'T Strip Prince Harry & Meghan Markle's Titles After He Becomes King — as 'Sussex' Brand Is Already 'Worthless' After They 'Squandered It'
By Prince William ignoring the Sussexes entirely, it will be more 'cruel' than if he strips them of their titles.
Dec. 26 2025, Published 7:45 p.m. ET
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may have dodged a bullet in Prince William's plans to strip them of their titles. Still, the reason is the publicity-hungry duo's massive failures have rendered the Sussex brand poison, RadarOnline.com can exclusively reveal.
William, 43, reportedly planned to strip the couple of their Duke and Duchess of Sussex titles upon becoming king. However, he now doesn't want to look "petty" since Harry, 41, and Meghan, 44, have used their titles endlessly for commercial purposes while failing to get any financial or professional return on their formerly regal status.
'It's Over' for the Sussex Brand
A insider explained how the Sussex brand now 'doesn't mean anything.'
"William no longer has any intention to strip them of the Sussex title because, not because he's being kind, but the title's worthless," royal insider Rob Shuter reveals on Maureen Callahan's The Nerve podcast. "The Sussex brand now doesn't mean anything. They're not going to get any more deals. It's over. "
"What would you do if you were a Sussex? What could I do with that brand? Pretty much nothing," Shuter stressed after how the couple's exclusive big-bucks Netflix deal ended. Markle's As Ever food brand failed to make any lasting impact either, despite both endeavors drawing heavily on their royal titles.
"Ignoring' The Sussexes Actually 'More Cruel' Than Taking Away Their Titles
Royal insiders say ignoring the Sussexes instead of stripping their titles will be 'more cruel.'
"My sources tell me, and I think this is really, really smart, is that if he strips them, he'll just look like a petty brother. He'll look petty. If he doesn't strip them and ignores them, that's actually more cruel," the longtime Hollywood insider dished about why William has changed his mind on taking away the Sussexes' titles.
"It's worthless. What is that brand worth? And that's their own fault," he continued, of how Harry and Markle destroyed the brand that they hoped to build an empire on after quitting the royal family in January 2020 and moving to California to seek "financial independence."
'They've Squandered' What Could Have Been a Billion-Dollar Brand
The Sussexes poor work ethic and demanding nature made them an unpopular commodity.
"This is a billion-dollar brand. This is a brand that potentially could have been enormous, and they've squandered it," Shuter said of how the Sussexes failed to capitalize on their massive popularity after first arriving in the U.S.
Things initially went swimmingly for the couple, as Harry reportedly received $1million to give a speech to a group of bankers at a Miami conference in February 2020. The pair then allegedly signed with the Harry Walker Agency, which books A-list speakers for huge financial paydays.
The couple went on to ink big bucks deals with Netflix and Spotify, both of which went down in flames due to the duo's lack of output. Spotify's popular podcaster and Head of Talk Strategy, Bill Simmons, even labeled Harry and Markle "f------ grifters" after their deal came to an abrupt end in 2023.
It followed three years of waiting for the duo to deliver any product, ultimately having to hire a whole staff to get just 12 episodes of Markle's ill-fated Archetypes podcast.
Netflix ended the duo's five-year exclusive deal in August after only one project, 2022's Harry & Meghan docuseries, in which the duo aired their grievances against the royal family, found any success.
The Sussexes have failed to line up any new projects after burning too many bridges in Hollywood.
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Prince William doesn't need to come across as 'petty' for taking away the now worthless Sussex titles.
"So, I think that they don't need William to come along and cut them. They've done it themselves," Shuter explained about how the Prince of Wales no longer needs to formally strip Harry and Meghan's titles because the Sussex brand now has no positive commercial associations.
"What's that expression, Give them enough rope to hang themselves. I think this is a perfect example. And they've hung themselves. And the Sussex brand, too."
