Prince Harry and Meghan Markle hope to stomp out stereotypes about polo with their new Netflix present, in accordance with the docuseries’ showrunner, Miloš Balać.
Balać spoke to The Post on Monday earlier than Tuesday’s launch of Harry and Meghan’s five-episode documentary collection, “Polo,” and revealed that the couple desires viewers to know that the game isn’t nearly rosé and royalty.
Set on the 2024 US Open Polo Championship in Wellington, Florida, “Polo” goes behind the scenes of the match and follows a few of the sport’s largest gamers and the sacrifices they make for the sport they love.
“Both Prince Harry and Meghan have been simply superb collaborators from the beginning,” stated Balać, who additionally produced Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s soccer docuseries “Welcome to Wrexham.”
“They have a lot data concerning the sport, but in addition an understanding that we’re attempting to convey new individuals into this world.”
In Balać’s eyes, Harry and Meghan introduced distinct views to the venture.
“Harry comes at it as an athlete himself who’s grown up on this world and is only a professional – skilled, skilled skilled,” the producer defined.
“And then Meghan comes at it extra like me,” Balać added, noting that he knew nothing concerning the sport earlier than engaged on the collection.
Meghan, who began courting Harry in 2016, is now well-versed in all points of the sport; nevertheless, the Duchess of Sussex can relate to what number of “Polo” viewers will see the game.
“And so then it was about kind of taking from every of these views and constructing out the world the way in which we did,” Balać shared.
Asked whether or not Harry and Meghan had their very own takes on the venture, Balać replied, “I feel the collective intention was positively, positively to develop the viewers of polo.”
“I feel the distinction in method was that Harry, you realize, is admittedly seeing it as ‘have a look at how unbelievable these athletes are. Look how unbelievable these animals are’ which Meghan sees and says the identical,” he continued.
“But I feel for her, it’s additionally like, ‘Look at how unbelievable this neighborhood is.’”
He defined, “You know, she’s the one who’s sitting watching from the facet of the sphere and he or she was there, and we needed to showcase that a part of the world as nicely, the place it actually does really feel like one huge household. I feel that was actually the sensation we have been going for from the beginning.”
“But the intention was very unified: this can be a sport that we expect much more individuals will love as soon as they see past the stereotypes,” he added of the Duke and Duchess’ motivation in making the present.
“It’s not ‘Pretty Woman.’ It’s not nearly [the] wealthy and glamorous life on a Sunday. That positively is a part of the attraction. You know, that’s simple. But that’s on a Sunday, one match per week. The remainder of the week is a variety of exhausting work, a variety of blood, sweat and tears.”
The sport additionally has “a variety of informal enjoyable,” Balać stated. “Lots of people pulling up of their pickup vehicles, tailgating, watching a sport they love with their household, with their canine, caring for their horses — it truly is a life-style that I feel extra individuals can perhaps embrace than they could suppose.”
Before the present’s launch, many questioned if Harry would seem within the present. To his fan’s delight, the royal is featured closely within the collection’ fifth and last episode, taking part in in a match benefitting his charity, Sentebale, which he co-founded with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho.
The group helps weak youngsters in Lesotho and Botswana, together with these residing with HIV/AIDS and psychological well being challenges. It attracts a big quantity of funding from its annual polo match —The Sentebale Polo Cup.
However, Harry wasn’t initially speculated to be featured as prominently on the present, along with his look ensuing from a serendipitous scheduling overlap.
“The premise of the collection was at all times actually to seize polo at its highest degree within the US,” Balać instructed The Post. “It was about these athletes and their households.”
But because it seems, this yr’s Sentebale Polo Cup was slated in Wellington, Florida, on the similar time the US Open was happening.
“I feel we have been all very frankly, pleasantly stunned on the serendipity that the Sentebale charity match this yr was scheduled for Wellington, which actually was by likelihood. And so we received to function the Duke within the venture,” Balać stated.
“But in any other case I feel all of us would have been completely joyful if he, you realize, if it was simply concerning the US Open, as a result of that was at all times what we thought it might be.”
All 5 episodes of “Polo” can be found to stream now on Netflix.
