Oprah’s Royal Windfall: CBS Paid $7 Million-Plus for Meghan Markle-Prince Harry Interview (Report)

Two-hour special airs Sunday on CBS

Prince Harry Meghan Markle Oprah Winfrey CBS
Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese

CBS paid more than $7 million to air Oprah Winfrey’s sit-down with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle this weekend, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal on Friday.

The two-hour interview came with a price tag between $7 million and $9 million, the report said, citing multiple unnamed sources familiar with the deal. Representatives for CBS and Winfrey’s Harpo Productions did not immediately return TheWrap’s request for comment.

The two-hour special, set to air Sunday on CBS, is the couple’s first televised interview since they stepped aside from their roles as senior members of the royal family last year. A spokesperson for the couple told WSJ that Harry and Meghan were not paid for the interview.

Earlier this week, ITV landed the rights to broadcast the special in the U.K. in a deal reportedly worth around 1 million euros, or about $1.4 million.

According to CBS, the first portion of the interview, a one-on-one conversation between Markle and Winfrey, will cover “everything from stepping into life as a Royal, marriage, motherhood and philanthropic work, to how she is handling life under intense public pressure.” Harry, the Duke of Sussex, will join for the second part of the conversation to “speak about their move to the United States and their future hopes and dreams for their expanding family.”

The special is produced by Harpo Productions. Executive producers are Terry Wood and Tara Montgomery, co-executive producer is Brian Piotrowicz.

The interview comes as a number of Markle’s friends and former colleagues have come to her defense in the wake of a U.K. newspaper report accusing her of “bullying” during her time at Kengsington Palace.

Markle’s former “Suits” co-star Patrick J. Adams called her an “enthusiastic, kind, cooperative, giving, joyful and supportive member of our television family” in his lengthy defense of the Duchess, slamming the press for “racist, slanderous, clickbaiting vitriol,” as well as the royal family for “promoting and amplifying” the accusations.

In preview clips from Monday’s special, Markle herself appears to take a similar stance regarding the royal family, saying that she would not “be silent if there is an active role that the firm is playing in perpetuating falsehoods about us.” She has also previously denied the accusations through a spokesperson, calling them an “attack on her character.”

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