The UK release date for Cookie Queens, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry‘s latest film, has yet to be announced – but judging by the underwhelming reviews it’s had in the US, British audiences may not be rushing to the cinema to see it.
The film opened in America on August 7 and follows US girl scouts selling cookies to raise money over a six-week period, an annual tradition since the First World War.
US website Variety, which was once a keen supporter of the pair, described the girlhood documentary from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex‘s Archewell Productions as ‘too much of a reality-show ramble’.
Critic Owen Gleiberman said the film lacked emotion, writing: ‘Cookie Queens is a movie about precocious American girls learning to work the system, not fight it.’
He added: ‘The movie unfolds entirely in the present and never gives you even a fleeting sense of the past, of how Girl Scout Cookies rose in prominence to become the phenomenon they are today.’
The San Francisco Chronicle added the film is ‘as staged as it is sweet’ with critic Carla Meyer offering a frank appraisal of the regal executive producers’ efforts, suggesting the film ‘contains the same level of spontaneity as their other media projects. That is to say, next to none.’
Meghan, far right, with scouts, left, and director Alysa Nahmias, second from left, at a screening in July
The film opened in the US on August 8 and follows US girl scouts selling cookies to raise money over a six-week period, an annual tradition since the First World War (Pictured from left: The Duchess of Sussex, Amanda Jones and Alysa Nahmias)
Over at The Boston Globe, there was a more upbeat response; the Massachusetts newspaper said Cookie Queens delivered ‘surprising honesty and more than a little bite’, adding: ‘It puts some hard truths in the figurative mouths of babes, sneaking them in with a spoonful of sugar rather than a sledgehammer.’
Real-life audiences liked it more than the critics, although one viewer on Rotten Tomatoes called the 91-minute film ‘one of the worst documentaries I have ever seen’, while another suggested buying the cinema ticket was a ‘waste of money’.
The film, directed by Alysa Nahmias, fared dismally at the box office though, making less than £250,000 from showings in 446 cinemas and failing to dent the top ten releases. It is Harry and Meghan’s executive producer debut.
Neither Archewell Productions nor its distributor Roadside Attractions have revealed the costs to make and screen the project.
The film received support from the Sundance Documentary Fund and aired at the Sundance Film Festival in Salt Lake City in January.
While there was also a special screening of the documentary on July 29, with Meghan posing alongside Alysa Nahmias, there appears to have been limited promotion ahead of its release.
The documentary fared better on review site Rotten Tomatoes, with a 92 per cent positive rating – but the most recent reviews were a somewhat mixed affair
The lukewarm response is yet another blow for Meghan and Harry’s hopes of becoming big players in Hollywood.
The $100million (£74million) Netflix contract the couple signed in 2020 was downgraded to a ‘first look’ deal last summer. The streaming giant scored a hit with their first tell-all documentary Harry & Meghan but subsequent projects have fallen flat.
Despite the ongoing relationship, Cookie Queens was not picked up by the streaming platform.
According to movie website Box Office Mojo, the movie generated just £500 per cinema screening and, embarrassingly, was beaten by CatVideoFest 2026, which pulled in £421,334 despite airing in 191 fewer screens than Cookie Queens.
The film, described by Meghan as ‘absolutely irresistible’, follows the highs and lows – including rude customers and stressful deadline – of girls aged five to 12 during Girl Scout Cookies season.
A tradition in the US since 1917, Girl Scout Cookies season sees youngsters fundraising via biscuit sales every January to April – with Cookie Queens covering the sometimes stressful scenarios the scouts face
The film, which follows girl scouts selling cookies, failed to make more than £250,000. The film was beaten at the box office by CatVideoFest, a compliation of cat videos
The season sees young members of the Girl Scouts Of The USA selling shop-bought cookies to sell.
During The Apprentice-style challenge, the scouts are tasked with marketing, budgeting and selling the biscuits to fundraise as much as they can from January to April for local charity projects and troops.
Roadside Attractions told US entertainment website Deadline that the film had performed well with groups of current and former girl scouts.
‘We’re encouraged by the response and believe the film has a long life ahead as it continues to reach its many audiences,’ they said.
The film also has a positive score on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 92 per cent approval rating from 49 reviews – although much of the praise focuses on the young stars of the documentary rather than the film-making.
One offered a glowing five stars, saying: ‘I loved it. The girls were great showing different personalities and perspectives. For those of us who sold cookies ages ago, it is a real nostalgia trip.’
Another said: ‘More of a coming-of-age story than a documentary. These girls will melt your heart, but it doesn’t shy away from the mental toll cookie selling has on them.’
However, one disappointed viewer raged in a post written on Monday: ‘One of the worst documentaries I have ever seen. It was honestly the most boring film from start to finish.
‘I did not go into it with a biased opinion and was hoping to see a good film but I was seriously let down. Don’t waste your time or your money. It was terrible.’
Another who paid for her grandchildren to see the film on Saturday, wrote: ‘Absolute waste of money. Took my grandkids and we were bored to tears.
Meanwhile, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were captured ‘jamming’ at a gala in honour of David Foster on Friday night (Pictured before the event)
‘Also didn’t like that it seemed to make the Girl Scouts and brownies all about sell, sell, sell cookies and didn’t really represent what the Girl Scouts and brownies are really about.’
Since the Duke and Duchess of Sussex first dipped their toes in the world of Hollywood six years ago, the couple have found they’ve experienced the film industry’s ruthless nature first-hand.
In 2025, Netflix had a stake in her Meghan’s lifestyle and cookery brand As Ever, which includes her jam, rosé wine and flower sprinkles, and helped launch the corresponding Netflix series – which aired for two seasons with an additional holiday special.
However, earlier this year it was announced the brand had split from Netflix and Meghan would instead take complete control of As Ever.
A source told The Sun at the time: ‘Meghan is still on good terms with the Netflix team and close personal friends with Ted [Sarandos], so hasn’t wanted to upset him, but is very happy to have full control of the company.
‘It’s a good time for Meghan to have complete control, given recent successes.
‘Netflix have been a good partner, but she’s wanted to go global with the brand for some time, but has been held back by the more cautious Netflix team.’
Last August, the couple signed a more restrictive, first-look agreement with Netflix.
Meghan described the deal at the time as ‘an incredible sign of the strength of our partnership’, despite rumours the network may be pivoting away from her and Harry.
The latest film development comes months after it was announced that the couple were involved in another Netflix film production, an adaptation of romance novel The Wedding Date by bestselling author Jasmine Guillory.
The book was published in 2018 and became the first in a six-book series.
It is being adapted by screenwriter Tracy Oliver who was behind the 2017 movie Girls Trip, and the couple are producing the movie alongside Ms Ryerson.
A blurb for the Wedding Date book says: ‘A groomsman and his last-minute guest are about to discover if a fake date can go the distance in a fun and flirty debut novel.
‘Agreeing to go to a wedding with a guy she gets stuck with in an elevator is something Alexa Monroe wouldn’t normally do. But there’s something about Drew Nichols that’s too hard to resist.’
The couple’s other major media deal with Spotify ended in 2023 after one season of Meghan’s podcast Archetypes, with one of the streaming giant’s executives later branding them ‘grifters’.
