A couple of years ago, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s post-palace story still had a certain Hollywood sheen: big promises, big platforms, bigger symbolism. Now the narrative being pushed in tabloids is uglier and more intimate—less “reinvention” and more frantic money math, with Tyler Perry cast as the benefactor they allegedly can’t (or won’t) call back.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have always insisted their 2020 break from royal life was about autonomy—emotional, institutional, and, pointedly, financial. But the latest reporting claims that the price of that freedom is starting to feel punishing, and that the couple’s carefully curated California chapter has begun to resemble the kind of high-end trap that only looks glamorous from a distance.
EXCLUSIVE: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Worst Nightmares Revealed — With Marriage Crumbling and Pair Going Broke! https://t.co/4S4ZwkU03u pic.twitter.com/5hLBiEdHF4
— Radar Online (@radar_online) February 13, 2026
The most combustible detail comes from RadarOnline, which describes Prince Harry, 41, and Meghan Markle, 44, as “ghosting” Tyler Perry after allegedly taking a $14 million loan—an allegation that, if true, would turn a public friendship into a private standoff.
An AOL write-up of similar claims (sourced to Globe) goes further, saying Perry is furious and feels “finished” with them, after previously letting them stay in his $18 million Beverly Hills mansion and helping with security when they relocated to California.
It’s worth pausing on why this particular rumor has teeth. Hollywood is full of breakups, but few are as socially radioactive as being branded ungrateful to the person who once played savior—especially when that savior is wealthy, connected, and famously able to pick up the phone.
Even the alleged “ghosting” detail lands like a character note: not just money trouble, but the kind of awkward avoidance that suggests a relationship has soured beyond a tidy PR fix.
Meghan on her husband Prince Harry 🥹
“He is such a great partner. I feel that everyday in how supportive he has been. That man loves me so much, look what we have built. We have built a beautiful life and we have two healthy beautiful children.”#MeghanSussex pic.twitter.com/qBl08KCpMv
— ChrisBaronSmith (@ChrisBaronSmit1) April 28, 2025
And then there’s the uncomfortable word at the center of the gossip: “broke.” These reports are not claiming the Sussexes are struggling in any normal-person sense; they’re describing a world where a $15 million Montecito home, a major mortgage, and massive security costs can still produce genuine pressure. In that framing, “nearly broke” doesn’t mean empty cupboards—it means running a luxury life on deals that don’t reliably renew.
The money argument hinges on two realities the couple can’t simply manifest away: security is expensive, and entertainment contracts are fickle. In court coverage and legal analysis around Prince Harry’s UK security fight, the core issue is clear—after stepping back from royal duties, his protection arrangements changed to a case-by-case approach, and he has challenged the process through the courts.
The BBC has reported that he lost a legal case over reinstating police protection when visiting the UK, with his security remaining subject to government review and that case-by-case framework.
The tabloids and their follow-on coverage attach a number to the strain: an estimated $3 million a year for private security. If you accept that figure—even as an estimate—it’s not hard to see how Meghan Markle and Prince Harry cost base becomes brutal when media income slows, projects underperform, or the next big cheque doesn’t arrive on schedule.
On the business side, the couple’s Netflix relationship appears to have shifted from the splashy, early-era “overall deal” to something notably less committed: a first-look arrangement.
Meghan Markle DUMPED BY TYLER PERRY Over UNPAID $14 MILLION LOAN!? pic.twitter.com/kYlvRKyRdY
— Stef The Alter Nerd (@StefAlterNerd) February 12, 2026
The Los Angeles Times described that newer pact as less exclusive than the 2020 overall deal, and Forbes similarly framed it as a reduced level of commitment, in line with Netflix’s broader move away from massive exclusive contracts.
That’s the part fans and critics alike often miss: celebrity doesn’t automatically translate into a durable media company. If the rumor mill is right, Prince Harry is now doing paid speeches—reported by Globe coverage as part of the couple’s cash flow picture—while RadarOnline’s sourcing paints a household under pressure rather than in control.
The final twist in these reports is also the most psychologically pointed: the claim that Harry has been “begging” King Charles III for help and would return to the UK “in a heartbeat.” Whether that’s true or tabloid theatre, it’s a striking inversion of the independence story that originally made their exit feel like a declaration rather than a retreat.
