Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s latest Hollywood project has suffered an embarrassing box-office opening – and adding insult to injury, the royal couple’s documentary was reportedly beaten by a movie made up of cat videos.
Cookie Queens, the new documentary executive produced by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex through Archewell Productions, opened in 446 theaters worldwide on August 7 but managed just $327,797 at the box office, according to figures reported by Box Office Mojo.
That was not enough to crack the weekend’s Top 10.
But here’s where things get particularly awkward for Harry and Meghan: CatVideoFest 2026, a compilation of cat videos submitted by fans around the world, reportedly earned $568,414 despite playing in only 255 theaters.
Yes, the cats won.
The comparison is especially eye-catching because Cookie Queens had nearly twice as many theaters in which to find an audience. According to the report, the documentary averaged less than $1,000 per screening.
One unnamed industry source quoted by The Times reportedly described the result as “a pretty pitiful return.”
The disappointing opening comes despite Meghan personally throwing her support behind the documentary. She attended a screening in late July and also joined Harry at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year to help promote the project.
Directed by Alysa Nahmias, Cookie Queens follows girls involved with Girl Scouts of the USA as they sell the organization’s famous cookies and learn about friendship, perseverance, entrepreneurship and self-belief.
The subject has a personal connection for Meghan, who has spoken about being a Girl Scout herself while her mother, Doria Ragland, served as a troop leader.
“I think the value of friendship, of being dedicated to a goal, as you can see that in Cookie Queens, it’s so reflective of how these girls stick with something that’s important to them and don’t give up,” Meghan said while promoting the film.
She added that “self-belief is an integral value that comes with being a Girl Scout.”
Harry and Meghan do not appear in the documentary, but their Archewell Productions banner partnered with Beautiful Stories and AJNA Films on the project.
Distributor Roadside Attractions, meanwhile, is putting a much more optimistic spin on the numbers. The company said it was encouraged by the response from groups of current and former Girl Scouts and believes the documentary could continue finding audiences beyond its theatrical opening.
“We’re encouraged by the response and believe the film has a long life ahead as it continues to reach its many audiences,” the distributor said.
Still, the underwhelming theatrical debut arrives at an awkward moment for the Sussexes’ entertainment ambitions.
Harry and Meghan burst into streaming with enormous attention surrounding their 2022 Netflix docuseries Harry & Meghan. The six-part series became a massive documentary debut for the streaming giant, generating 23.4 million views during its first four days, although reaction to the series was sharply divided.
Subsequent Archewell projects have struggled to generate the same cultural splash.
Meghan also ventured deeper into the lifestyle space with With Love, Meghan, while simultaneously building her As Ever brand. Her connection to the Girl Scouts even crossed over into that business: she previously shared childhood photographs of herself selling Girl Scout cookies while promoting an As Ever shortbread cookie mix.
The Sussexes’ relationship with Netflix has also evolved. Rather than the sweeping production arrangement that initially accompanied their post-royal move into entertainment, their newer agreement has been described as a multiyear first-look deal, giving Netflix the opportunity to consider projects developed by the couple.
That makes the performance of each new Archewell production all the more closely watched.
And Harry and Meghan apparently aren’t finished with Hollywood yet.
The couple are reportedly involved as co-producers in an adaptation of Jasmine Guillory’s popular romance novel The Wedding Date through Archewell Productions and Netflix.
Whether that project can deliver the kind of breakout success the Sussexes enjoyed with Harry & Meghan remains to be seen.
For now, however, Cookie Queens has handed royal watchers a box-office headline Harry and Meghan probably could have done without: their latest movie didn’t just miss the Top 10.
It got beaten by the cats.
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