Prince Harry has been praised by Netflix documentary makers for his ‘love and dedication’ to Afghanistan as he promoted their new film on streaming service where he has a £122 million contract.
The Duke of Sussex, 38, who is currently living in his $14 million mansion in California having stepped back from royal duty last year, spoke with Elizabeth and Gulistan Mirzaei about their film Three Songs for Benazir last week.
In a screengrab of the conversation shared to Twitter, the filmmakers wrote: ‘Last week, we had the honor and privilege to speak with Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex about our film Three Songs for Benazir.
‘Prince Harry’s love, and dedication to Afghanistan is truly inspiring and we are so grateful to have had the opportunity to share our story with him.’
Although the video of the discussion doesn’t appear to be available online as yet, it’s unclear what Prince Harry’s involvement with the film is, or whether the conversation was purely for promotional reasons.
The royal, who served two tours in Afghanistan during his decade in the Army, signed a reputed £120million deal with Netflix in 2020.
Prince Harry’s ‘love and dedication to Afghanistan’ was praised by Netflix documentary makers today as he appeared to promote a new film about the country on the streaming service
Although the video of the discussion doesn’t appear to be available online as yet, it’s unclear what Prince Harry’s involvement with the film is, or whether the conversation was purely for promotional reasons
In the photograph, the Duke can be seen sitting in his California mansion while wearing a relaxed grey linen shirt.
He appeared to be relaxing in front of a large tapestry hung onto a white wall, while there was also a green shrub in the corner of the screen.
The 22-minute documentary, which was released on the streaming service earlier this year, tells the story of Shaista, a young man who is a refugee living in a displaced-persons camp in Kabul.
Shaista struggles to balance his dreams of being the first from his tribe to join the Afghan National Army, with pressure from his family to start having children with his new wife Benazir.
The royal, who served two tours in Afghanistan during his decade in the Army, signed a reputed £120million deal with Netflix in 2020 (pictured in Afghanistan)
In the photograph, the Duke can be seen sitting in his California mansion while wearing a relaxed grey linen shirt (pictured right)
The appearance from the Duke to apparently promote the Netflix film comes weeks after the streaming began taking steps to get the Duke and Duchess to produce some shows in 2022 – after they signed a reputed £120million deal to make TV.
The couple founded Archewell, which will make documentaries, feature films, scripted shows and children’s programming in September 2020, and went on to announce the deal with Netflix.
In a statement at the time, the Sussexes 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.’
They added that Netflix’s ‘unprecedented reach will help us share impactful content that unlocks action.’
The 22-minute documentary, which was released on the streaming service earlier this year, tells the story of Shaista, a young man who is a refugee living in a displaced-persons camp in Kabul
Shaista struggles to balance his dreams of being the first from his tribe to join the Afghan National Army, with pressure from his family to start having children with his new wife Benazir (pictured, looking at an advertisement in Kabul)
However there has been very little content produced, or announced, by the couple since.
The streaming giant, whose huge cash deal was one of the first to be announced after they quit as frontline royals, placed the advert for a production designer on Instagram in January for Meghan’s debut series Pearl.
The animated show, created by the Duchess of Sussex, is about a young girl who is inspired by influential women in history and counts Sir Elton John’s husband David Furnish and star documentary maker Liz Garbus among its executive producers.
Harry’s latest appearance comes after it emerged Prince Harry and Meghan ‘are being lined up to present the Best Picture Oscar’ next week despite both pulling out of Prince Philip’s memorial service.
Prince Harry and Meghan ‘are being lined up to present the Best Picture Oscar’ next week despite both pulling out of Prince Philip’s memorial service in London
The Duke and Duchess were said to have been approached at the end of last year, but it is not yet known whether they have agreed to attend the event, held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, March 27 – just two days before the London service.
According to reports, Harry and Meghan had initially been lined up to present the award for Best Actress in a nod to their work on women’s rights, but the plan was scrapped after Kristen Stewart was nominated for her role in Spencer, a film about the life of Diana.
A source told The Sun newspaper: ‘It would be seen as a final kick in the teeth for the royal family if he did – he’s too nervous to fly to London without police protection, but happy to stand up in front of a huge live audience at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Not great optics.’
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