Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s latest Hollywood venture has earned a label they are unlikely to appreciate. Their film, “Cookie Queens,” which hit U.S. theaters on August 7, not only underperformed at the box office but also drew scathing reviews from critics and royal commentators.
Royal commentator mocks Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s latest box office flop, Cookie Queens
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s media production company, Archewell Productions, collaborated with Beautiful Stories and AJNA Films on “Cookie Queens.” The coming-of-age story about Girl Scouts selling their cookies follows the story of “four tenacious girls (who) strive to be a top-selling ‘Cookie Queen’, navigating an 800 million dollar business in which childhood and ambition collide.”
The film premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival and has earned roughly $290,000 from its release across 446 cinemas. In a particularly embarrassing comparison, its box-office haul failed to surpass that of a compilation featuring some of the world’s best cat videos called “CatVideoFest 2026.”
One industry source told The Times, “Not taking the good name of the world’s No 1 cat video festival in vain, this is by any measure a pretty pitiful return.”
Box office poison. #Unsussexful pic.twitter.com/OdGFEyIDrv
— Lee Cohen ???? (@TheTeaWithLee) August 12, 2026
Meanwhile, Lee Cohen, a royal and foreign policy commentator, labelled the film “Box office poison” on X. The US-based columnist also added the hashtag “#Unsussexful,” alongside a snapshot of a GB News story about the film’s reviews.
Back in March, when Markle announced the project, she described it as “absolutely irresistible.” She said, “As a former girl scout myself, with my mom as my troop leader, I have a personal affinity for this film and am proud that Archewell Productions has partnered with this award-winning team to executive produce this incredibly captivating film.”
Roadside Attractions, the independent distributor for the film, has a more positive outlook towards the opening. A spokesperson told Deadline, “We’re encouraged by the response and believe the film has a long life ahead as it continues to reach its many audiences.” They insisted that it did well with current and former Girl Scouts.
Originally reported by Ankita Shaw on Mandatory.
