Prince Andrew's Royal Wave Goodbye: Amazon's Emily Maitlis Show Tanks in Ratings as Disgraced Duke Hopes 'Endless Attacks' Meet Similar Fate
Amazon Prime Video's A Very Royal Scandal is a flop — and somewhere within the "rotting' walls of the Royal Lodge, disgraced Prince Andrew is probably "having a right royal laugh."
This led a pal of the Duke to tell The Daily Beast, "It's a great relief that this new show appears to have sunk without trace."
The three-part drama explored the lead-up to and fallout from the November 2019 "disaster" interview with journalist Emily Maitlis (played by Ruth Wilson). Andrew, who is played by Welsh actor Michael Sheen as "horrible and arrogant," was said to have hosted a watch party for the program at Royal Lodge, although it is rumored no senior royals showed up.
Despite his initial reaction, the Duke of York "felt he came out of the first film rather well," his friend spilled further. "It seemed hard to believe there would be any appetite for another go-round and that looks to be the case." The confidant said the eighth in line to the British throne is "getting on with his own life and hopes these endless attacks on him will stop."
Although it is unknown which junior royals decided to attend, one certain monarchy member was "certainly" not one of them.
"I don’t imagine the King will watch it, but he will be made aware of its contents and any repercussions, I’m sure," veteran royal reporter Jennie Bond dished. "It’s bound to be a further embarrassment for all concerned. Andrew really is the problem that refuses to go away."
She added, "I'm sure the King, and indeed Andrew, wish the interview had never taken place, even though Andrew was so pleased with it immediately after the filming."
The scandal-plagued prince seemed to have had a change of heart about the three-parter series since in the run-up to the project drop, another pal of the Duke shared, "He is depressed and Sarah and the kids are anxious about this show. You have to remember that he absolutely insists he has no memory of ever meeting Giuffre and denies having sex with her. He has never been found guilty of anything."
The program received moderate reviews and has many viewers confused about its purpose since it follows the Netflix film Scoop from earlier this year that explored the exact same material.
"I think that probably is overplayed, overstated," Maitlis shared when discussing the rival streamer flick. "This [the Amazon series] will be a very different beast. I'm sure there's room for both."
The journalist, who serves as an executive producer on the new Prime Video project, said she let Netflix "do their own thing because I think the last thing they want is me peeking around the edges."