Prince Harry’s next on-screen appearance will look rather different from his last. While he was most recently on CBS alongside Meghan Markle in a revealing interview with Oprah, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are now focusing their efforts on their first project with Netflix through Archewell Productions since signing a deal with the streaming service last fall. Their producing debut? A docuseries on the Invictus Games — the global adaptive sports competition Prince Harry founded — from Oscar-winning duo director Orlando von Einsiedel and producer Joanna Natasegara.
“Heart of Invictus” will follow a group of international competitors, all service members who experienced life-changing injuries or illnesses on the road to the Invictus Games The Hague 2020, though the competition will now take place in 2022. The series will document their training and reveal their compelling life stories, as well as follow the Games’ organizers as they partner with each nation’s team to support their athletes.
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s pact with Netflix covers documentaries, feature films, scripted TV series and children’s shows. The couple founded Archewell Productions as a vehicle to produce programming that can “embrace our shared humanity and duty to truth through a compassionate lens,” per the organization’s mission.
In addition to executive producing “Heart of Invictus,” Prince Harry will also appear on camera in the docuseries.
“Since the very first Invictus Games back in 2014, we knew that each competitor would contribute in their own exceptional way to a mosaic of resilience, determination, and resolve,” said Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, co-founder of Archewell Productions and patron of the Invictus Games Foundation in a statement. “This series will give communities around the world a window into the moving and uplifting stories of these competitors on their path to the Netherlands next year. As Archewell Productions’ first series with Netflix, in partnership with the Invictus Games Foundation, I couldn’t be more excited for the journey ahead or prouder of the Invictus community for continuously inspiring global healing, human potential and continued service.”
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The Invictus Games Foundation will serve as an executive producer. The project will provide “significant funding to the organization,” according to Netflix, supporting the group’s work ahead of the Games at The Hague. As part of that, the international Invictus community is being offered access to virtual sports activities to help their recovery and preparation. After the 2022 Games in the Netherlands, the next one will be held in Dusseldorf, Germany in 2023.
“We’re very excited about the opportunity to shine the global spotlight of Netflix on the men and women that we work with, in order to ensure that even more people can be inspired by their determination and fortitude in working towards their recovery,” said Dominic Reid, chief executive of the Invictus Games Foundation. “This partnership will also bring in significant funding to the charity. We are extremely grateful to our Founding Patron for his continued efforts to support the military community, and for making this partnership happen.”
Director von Einsiedel is the founder of Grain Media, while Natasegara founded Violet Films. Their 2015 documentary feature “Virunga” was nominated for an Academy Award, while 2016 documentary short “The White Helmets” won an Oscar.
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the Archewell Productions team are building an ambitious slate that reflects the values and causes they hold dear,” said Ted Sarandos, Netflix co-CEO and chief content officer. “From the moment I met them, it’s been clear that the Invictus Games hold a very special place in their hearts, and I couldn’t be happier that their first series for Netflix will showcase that for the world in a way never seen before.”
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