UTA was ‘actively pursuing’ Meghan Markle before its CEO snubbed her
In April, it was revealed that Meghan Markle signed with WME, a rival talent agency to UTA
June 27, 2023
It seems that United Talent Agency CEO Jeremy Zimmer was not pleased that Meghan Markle chose to sign with their rival company, leading him to snub her.
According to Page Six, sources revealed that a stream of Zimmer’s own agents still tried to sign Meghan despite his criticism.
In the wake of the axed Spotify deal of Prince Harry and Meghan, Jeremy Zimmer, Chief Executive at United Talent Agency, blasted the Suits actress as ‘untalented.’
“Turns out Meghan Markle was not a great audio talent, or necessarily any kind of talent,” Jeremy Zimmer told Semafor at the 2023 Cannes Lions advertising festival last week.
“And, you know, just because you’re famous doesn’t make you great at something,” he added.
In response, the insider told Page Six, “So, then why did Jeremy have multiple agents trying to sign Meghan? They were in serious pursuit. One of their agents was recently actively pursuing her.”
Another source familiar with the situation said that the Duchess of Sussex never spoke with UTA agents.
Zimmer has represented major stars throughout his career including Mariah Carey, Bryan Cranston, DJ Khaled, Chelsea Handler and Kevin Hart.
Meanwhile, in April, it was revealed that Meghan has signed on William Morris Endeavor (WME), a rival Hollywood talent agency to UTA. WME has represented major stars including Dwayne Johnson, Adele, and tennis player Serena Williams.
Prince Harry and Meghan had lost out on their Spotify which was worth $20 million dollars just after airing one season of the show. According to a source cited by Variety, Spotify had been expecting more content from Archewell Audio. Nearly three years after signing the contract, only one series had been released.
Sources close to Spotify also said the royal couple did not meet the productivity benchmark required to receive the full headline payout from the deal, according to the Wall Street Journal.
However, after reports of Harry and Meghan facing pressure from Netflix made headlines, a spokesperson the streaming service refuted the claims saying they will ‘continue to work together on a number of projects.’
