Meghan Markle drops her longtime agent who repped her since Suits
Meghan Markle has parted ways with her ‘dream team’ advisor Nick Collins after he repped her for years, insiders claim.
Collins has been Markle’s agent from her years as an actress on Suits, stuck with her even after she vowed to quit show business when she got engaged to Prince Harry in 2017, and helped her plan ‘Megxit’.
But sources told DailyMail.com that the Duchess is no longer using Collins as her agent, after a giant $100 million Netflix deal, multi-million dollar podcast signing with Spotify and other lucrative business ventures allowed her to hire a new in-house team.
Collins, a partner at leading Tinseltown deal makers The Gersh Agency which represented the former Suits actress for several years, will remain as a ‘consultant’.
There is no bad blood between the two, the sources said.
Meghan Markle has parted ways with her longtime agent Nick Collins who was part of her ‘dream team’ of advisors for years, DailyMail.com can reveal. Collins will stay on as a ‘consultant’
Collins has been Markle’s agent since her years as an actress on Suits and helped her plan ‘Megxit’. He stuck with her even after she vowed to quit show business when she got engaged to Prince Harry in 2017. Meghan is pictured on Suits
Collins was one of a handful of American guests at Markle and Prince Harry’s May 2018 wedding at Windsor Castle, and was also named by insiders as a ‘key advisor and independent voice’ for the Sussexes when they planned to leave the UK and build their new careers in California.
A second source said that Collins and the Duchess are still friends, and that she has also kept her entertainment lawyer Rick Genow (pictured)
In January 2020 DailyMail.com revealed Meghan had kept her agent after joining the royal family, causing controversy at the time due to her previous claims in a November 2017 BBC interview that she would no longer work in Hollywood.
But in recent months Markle has built her own media, charity and production teams to support her non-profit Archewell, and business deals with media giants Netflix and Spotify.
‘It is a very strange development really. Nick has been a loyal friend and confidante for Meghan and Harry over the past few years,’ an LA talent agency source told DailyMail.com.
‘His expertise and knowledge of business matters in Hollywood and contact list is astonishing.
‘While on paper she was not accepting work offers as an actress, other work opportunities and roles did come in through Gersh.
‘And with the upheaval and swift departure from England and business plan needed, many believe he played a key role in helping the Sussexes get the ball rolling in business. He was part of the ‘6’Dream Team.”’
The source added that Meghan switched Collins’ role as she is not intending to take on any acting roles in the near future.
‘Meghan insists that she has no plans to act presently so he’s not needed to negotiate deals,’ the source said.
‘Make no mistake – acting and voiceover offers are flooding in to the couple. But now they will go to their production company and personal media team.
‘Certainly dealing with any opportunities that way means that the twenty percent commission usually charged by an agent, is saved.’
The Duke of Sussex was unveiled on Tuesday as the chief impact officer at BetterUp with this corporate black and white photograph of Harry released at the same time. Sources told DailyMail.com that the Duchess is no longer using Collins as her agent after lucrative business ventures allowed her to hire a new in-house team
A second source said that Collins and the Duchess are still friends, and that she has also kept on her entertainment lawyer Rick Genow.
The agent joined the Gersch Agency in 2005, was made a partner in 2015 and promoted to Co-Head of Talent three years later.
His other clients include Chicago Fire star Taylor Kinney, Emmy winners Courtney B. Vance and Eric McCormack, and This Is Us star Mandy Moore.
Since Meghan and Harry’s March move to Los Angeles, the couple has landed a $100 million Netflix deal, as well as a multi-million dollar podcast, Archewell Audio, with Spotify.
The former royals unveiled their new foundation, Archewell, and Meghan has become a private investor in wellness brand Clevr Blends.
Harry has also bolstered their income by taking on two new roles: chief impact officer for mental health startup BetterUp and a member of the Aspen Institute’s Commission on Information Disorder, an organization set up to tackle the problem of misinformation and fake news.
The couple have reshuffled, promoted and enlarged their staff to deal with their ambitious new careers in Southern California.
Former Bill Gates executive Catherine St-Laurent (pictured) came on board as Chief of Staff for Archewell – only to be reshuffled into a different role that will offer ‘daily guidance and support’ for the non-profit. They also hired former Pinterest communications chief Christine Schirmer (right) to lead their public relations team alongside Hollywood PR firm Sunshine Sachs
Expanding their in-house team, the Duke and Duchess have hired former Pinterest communications chief Christine Schirmer to lead their public relations team alongside Hollywood PR firm Sunshine Sachs.
Former Bill Gates executive Catherine St-Laurent also came on board as Chief of Staff for Archewell – only to be reshuffled into a different role that will offer ‘daily guidance and support’ for the non-profit.
Another recent staffing change is for James Holt, currently the Sussexes’ media relations chief in the UK, who will reportedly be promoted to Executive Director of the Archewell Foundation.
In recent days the pair also hired Ben Browning, a producer on Emerald Fennell’s Oscar-nominated film Promising Young Woman, as Head of Content for their production company, heading up the other two divisions of the company: Archewell Productions and Archewell Audio.
Toya Holness, their media relations spokeswoman in California, has been elevated to the role of Archewell’s ‘global press secretary’.
