Theo James Says the Rumors Meghan Markle Is Joining ‘The Gentlemen’ Are “Hot Air”
Netflix’s buzzy show about a drug-dealing Duke, The Gentlemen, returns tomorrow, and star Theo James is over all the rumors swirling about Meghan Markle joining season three. When T&C asked James, who plays Eddie, the 13th Duke of Halstead, in the series, about the possibility of a certain ex-royal being on the show, he replied with a smile, “Yes, Fergie is joining. She’ll be playing my love interest.”
He continued, “No, I think that was mainly a lot of hot air,” referring to the ongoing coverage of the Duchess of Sussex’s potential role in the series. “At the moment, we’re just trying to get as many eyes on season two, and then season three will happen soon. But in terms of story, we have the overarching ambition of where we’re going to go. We’re going to expand the world, go to different countries. But in terms of the minutiae, I mean, it’s still very much up in the air.”
Soon after news broke of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s move back to the UK and Meghan’s rumored return to acting, Deadline reported that the Duchess of Sussex was in talks to join Guy Ritchie’s Netflix series The Gentlemen for its third season. While some were quick to report a role had never been offered, during an appearance at the Edinburgh TV Festival last week, Manda Levin, Netflix’s UK scripted chief, gave a cryptic answer when asked about Meghan’s rumored casting. “All bets are off,” she said.
Of Levin’s reply, Deadline noted, “The stunt casting would bring a lot of attention to the show, and potentially new viewers. And it’s in the family — Markle and Prince Harry have a first-look deal at Netflix, where they have projects in development across film and TV.”
Season two of The Gentlemen spends ample time in the world of Italian aristocracy, and James is interested in exploring the Middle East in season three. “It’s rich culturally and it’s complex because of, obviously, all the reasons we know, from wealth to war, and it fits in very well with the concept of The Gentlemen,” he says. But on a selfish front, he’s hoping season three will head to the south of France.
No matter where The Gentlemen goes, though, audiences remain fascinated by the stories of rich people (and aristocrats) behaving badly. “We live now in a world of the tech oligarch, where headlines seem larger than life and can’t be true, but they end up being true,” says James. “People are fascinated by the idea of wealth and how wealth can corrupt people, ultimately. That’s what we’re interested in here.”
He adds, “Also with The Gentlemen, and some British shows, there’s a romance to ex-colonial Britain, but it’s also tinged with all the fucked-up shit that we did as an empire. So there’s a lot to be intrigued by, whether it’s consciously or subconsciously.”
Eddie (James) with his season two love interest, Bella (Benedetta Porcaroli).
The series’ appeal lies in its fantasy: The Gentlemen offers a peek into the glamorous world of sprawling estates, old titles, and extravagant criminal schemes. But at its core, it is still a story of two people (James and Scodelario) navigating family pressures and ambition.
“My job is to keep it as grounded as possible because without grounding in some semblance of reality, you lose stakes, because it all seems too far-fetched,” says James. “Without stakes, then nothing really matters. So characters’ choices and actions become consequential. In a way, that’s part of my job, to keep it as real as possible.”
He continues, “You still want the humor, but this season we wanted to take some of the wins of season one, but also learn from some of the things that we didn’t quite get to do on season one, which was push the characters into a bit more depth, give them moral quandaries that they can have regrets about and that can have lasting ramifications upon them. And also with my character, soften him, see him make mistakes and fall in love and be betrayed and everything in between, to evolve the show as much as we can.”
James concludes, “I hope we did. To me, I feel that the show is more complex than season one, and that was what I really hoped we could do, but we’ll see how people enjoy it.”
The Gentlemen season two premieres on Netflix on Thursday, September 3.
Emily Burack (she/her) is the Deputy Digital Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, celebrities, the royals, and a wide range of other topics. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma, a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Instagram, Twitter, and other social media platforms.