Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Try Selling Post-Royal Philosophy — Crowd Isn’t Buying

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle continued their push into documentary filmmaking at the Sundance Film Festival this weekend, presenting Cookie Queens, a coming-of-age film about four Girl Scouts navigating the high-pressure world of competitive cookie sales.

Harry and Meghan were out in force for the film’s rollout, most notably hitting the red carpet at Park City’s Eccles Center Theater. The couple spent time posing for cameras alongside director Alysa Nahmias and the rest of the production crew, signaling just how much skin they have in this particular game. The 91-minute documentary, which screens in Sundance’s Family Matinee category, is executive produced by the couple through their company, Archewell Productions.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Appear at Sundance Film Festival

The film centers on a quintessentially American tradition — Girl Scout cookie season — but reframes it through the lens of girlhood, ambition and early exposure to the pressures of performance and commerce.

Speaking on the red carpet, Meghan Markle leaned into the nostalgia. Asked about her favorite cookie, she smiled and told PEOPLE magazine, “I’m a Thin Mints. It’s such a classic. And as a Girl Scout, it was always the one that sold the fastest, so I think you remember it for that reason too.” On the long-running debate over storing them in the freezer, she added, “I don’t know if you’re supposed to, but it’s certainly a nice plus!”

Meghan Markle’s Personal Connection to Girl Scouts

Markle’s connection to the subject is personal. She was a Girl Scout in California, with her mother, Doria Ragland, serving as her troop leader. In a previous statement shared with Deadline, she said, “As a former Girl Scout myself, with my mom as my troop leader, I have a personal affinity for this film. I’m proud that all our conversations and collaboration have led to Archewell Productions partnering with this award-winning team to executive produce this incredibly captivating documentary.”

That personal history has become an increasingly visible part of Markle’s public storytelling. Last year, while promoting her Lemonada Media podcast, Confessions of a Female Founder, she shared childhood photos of herself selling Girl Scout cookies, writing, “Being an entrepreneur can start young. (By the way, all these years later and I’m still selling cookies!).” The comment doubled as a nod to her current lifestyle brand, which includes a cookie mix among its offerings.

‘Cookie Queens’ Director on Girlhood, Pressure and Leadership

Nahmias, whose previous work often explores youth and identity, described the film as an attempt to open up larger conversations about growing up in a demanding culture.

“For me as a mom — and with my kids asking me to make a film that they and their friends would really want to watch — I hope it sparks conversations about what it means to grow up today, and opens up questions that can be difficult to have,” she told PEOPLE. “About the pressures that kids can feel from parents and society, especially girls — how we’re perceived, what our value is, and how we participate in the economy and in society.”

Markle echoed that sentiment. “There’s nothing you can add to that,” she said of Nahmias’s remarks. “It’s the most perfect answer because it’s so true. That’s what she’s created with this. It’s incredible filmmaking, and I can’t wait for you to see it. I think people are going to love it.”

Meghan Markle Introduces ‘Cookie Queens’ at Early Screening

Inside the theater at an early-morning screening, Markle briefly addressed the audience, thanking attendees for showing up at 9 a.m. after what she suggested had been a late night on the festival circuit. It was “nothing that a little cookies and coffee can’t help,” she joked, before adding that she, Harry and Archewell were “so proud and privileged to help support and uplift Cookie Queens.”

“Yes, it’s probably the cutest film at the festival,” she said. “But I’m also going to go out on a limb and say it’s one of the most powerful and meaningful depictions of an American tradition.” She described the documentary as taking “something that is rooted in nostalgia” and reexamining it to show a modern view of “the girlhood experience — all the layers and complexities that come with that.”

Sundance Reception Highlights Challenges for Sussex Media Projects

Still, the film’s arrival at Sundance comes at a moment when the couple’s media ventures are being watched as closely for their cultural impact as for their star power. While some expected the royal connection to trigger an immediate sell-out, the mixed attendance at early screenings proves that Sundance audiences value the work over the fame. This is exactly where Archewell wants to play, though.

Archewell Productions Expands Post-Royal Storytelling Strategy

Since they started in 2020, the duo has tried to move away from the ‘celebrity’ label toward roles as serious producers, using projects like this to see if their ‘community-first’ philosophy can actually hold its own in a cutthroat industry.

Their fingerprints on Cookie Queens only became public this past December, when it was announced they had teamed up with Beautiful Stories and AJNA Films. Whether the film becomes a sleeper hit or just another title in the streaming shuffle, its Sundance premiere proves the duo is doubling down on stories of gritty, resilient youth—trying to find that sweet spot between old-school nostalgia and what is trending now.