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Not a lot of love.
Celebrity chef Jameson Stocks claims he turned down an offer from Netflix to work on Meghan Markle’s new cooking series, “With Love, Meghan,” to avoid public scrutiny and creating something “forced and fake.” However, sources close to production have told The Post that Stocks, 41, was never approached to be a part of the series.
“Chef Jameson Stocks was not invited to participate in ‘With Love, Meghan,’ and any claims to the contrary are incorrect,” the insider said.
“Jameson himself doesn’t even know which show it was for—he noted ‘he thinks it was for this show,’” the source continued, while cautioning against “taking his assumption as fact.”
Stocks spoke about the Duchess of Sussex’s show during a recent interview with GB News, sharing why he was skeptical of signing onto the show and his thoughts on the first season, which dropped on Monday.
“I was asked last year by Netflix if I wanted to consult on a lifestyle program,” the Michelin-starred chef told the outlet. “They didn’t go into too much detail about who it was but I already kind of knew anyway,” he added, implying that he knew they were asking him about Markle’s show.
He continued, “I felt like even if she produced a really great program — which I was quite skeptical of — that I might get a little bit slammed for being a part of it.”
“I didn’t like the idea of me showing her how to do something and then it being forced and fake,” he explained.
Referring to the production team that might be involved in making a show like Markle’s, Stocks said, “I imagine Netflix would have had two or three consultants — a stylist, for her clothes, to give her ideas for the food.”
“If she is going to do something herself, she should do something herself. Netflix is obviously such a huge company, they’re going to surround her with quality people to make her look good. At the end of the day, they’re trying to chase the money.”
As for what he thought of the eight-episode first season, which features Meghan’s famous friends Mindy Kaling and her former “Suits” co-star Abigail Spencer, Stocks said, “I honestly thought it was terrible.”
“Everything — the music is quite slow, it’s quite lethargic, it’s quite painful to watch,” he went on.
“I think she should go back to acting,” he suggested. “She’s quite a good actress. In real life or on screen. People should stick to what they do best.”
Stocks was not alone in his take on the show, with some critics calling it “pointless,” “exhausting” and “boring.”
Those reviews didn’t seem to phase Netflix, however. On Friday, the streamer announced they had renewed “With Love, Meghan” for Season 2 and that production on the second season was already wrapped.
Sources exclusively revealed to The Post that filming for Season 2 had begun by at least January.
Director Michael Steed, who worked on Season 1, commented on Markle’s skills in the kitchen in an interview with People. “Her cooking is pretty spot-on,” he said of the mother of two. “She’s not a chef, and it’s definitely not meant to make it seem like she is, but there’s just a love of cooking that is palpable.”
Steed also described the former “Suits” star as “friendly” and praised her for creating a “comfortable environment” for everyone working on the show.
One crew member on the show also told the outlet that Meghan was incredibly “warm,” “approachable” and “genuine.”
“She made sure everyone felt included, from Netflix executives to our director to every PA on set,” the person said. “No one was left out.”
Markle and her husband Prince Harry, 40, signed a $100 million deal with Netflix in 2020 after stepping down from their roles as senior working members of the royal family earlier that year. In addition to “With Love, Meghan,” the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have released two other docuseries on Netflix: “Harry & Meghan” in 2022, and Harry’s “Polo” doc in December 2024.