Director of Harry & Meghan Netflix docu-series does not feel that questioning the Monarchy is sacrilege

In an interview with Vanity Fair Magazine, Liz Garbus the director of the recent Harry and Meghan Netflix docu-series talks, among other things, about her thoughts on being asked to partner with Harry and Meghan on their six-part series; about each of their objectives from the project; and about what it was like to be part of the intense media attention that surrounds the couple.

Garbus revealed that whilst Meghan and Harry saw the aim of this documentary as to tell their love story for the first time from their point of view, Garbus the daughter of a lawyer and a therapist, says that she felt it was crucial for the docuseries to probe deeper.

Garbus explained that she felt it was really important for her to connect Meghan and Harry's story to larger historical story lines such as racism, colonialism, and how important white supremacy has been to the British Empire monarchy. 

Garbus explained "I don't feel that [questioning] the monarchy is sacrilege - in the way that I don’t feel [questioning] the American government is sacrilege,” adding: It’s our role as storytellers and critical thinkers to raise these questions.”

Released on December 8, Harry & Meghan broke Netflix’s viewership record for unscripted content with 81.55 million hours watched in the first week. The second week, viewing time climbed to 97.7 million hours. 

To those who would speak disparagingly about Meghan and Harry's decision to create this docu-series, Garbus says: “People are very happy to read everything about Harry and Meghan when it’s somebody else writing about them,” continuing: “But when Harry and Meghan want to tell their story in their own words, it suddenly becomes an issue. People are not forced to watch a documentary. It’s not going to be required in school. It is your choice what you binge and what you don’t binge. There have been more documentaries and books written about Harry and Meghan than Harry and Meghan have produced themselves."  Garbus added: "I think it’s an interesting kind of pearl-clutching that doesn’t quite add up with the public’s appetite for reading stuff about them from other people.”

Garbus experienced some of the behind the scenes shenanigans from aides to and  / or members of the Royal Family, something Meghan and Harry spoke about in their TV program and which Harry writes about in his memoir "Spare". Garbus describes how Buckingham Palace "said that we didn’t reach out for comment on the docu-series, when we did." Garbus added “They (Buckingham Palace) did that to discredit us…and by discrediting us, they can discredit the content of the show.… We lived through some of those moments that were a little bit like Alice Through the Looking Glass.”