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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have spent plenty of time in the spotlight since their relationship went public back in 2016. Since then, the two have seen some major life changes, from welcoming their first and second child to completely removing themselves from the royal family.

While all of these moments have garnered massive attention, some experts think the show has to end at some point; Harry and Meghan have made a ton of money from opening up about the royal family, but on their own, some might argue they haven’t seen the same success. What does the future hold for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex? One royal expert thinks they could wind up leading an eerily similar life to King Edward VIII, who abdicated the throne in order to marry the woman he loved.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle | Samir Hussein/WireImage

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle share similarities to Harry’s great uncle

Queen Elizabeth II only wound up in the role of queen after her uncle, King Edward VIII, chose to abdicate the throne (meaning he gave up becoming king) in order to marry someone of whom the royal family did not approve — a woman named Wallis Simpson. However, royal expert Tom Quinn says that once Edward and his wife distanced themselves from the royal family and the fanfare surrounding them slowed down, the two eventually became unhappy. Speaking to Express, Quinn said he worried Harry and Meghan could have the same fate as Harry’s ancestors.

“When … You can’t make any more films and interviews about how badly you’ve been treated, what then, what do you do?” Quinn said. “My fear is that Harry will become like Edward VIII and Meghan will become like Mrs. Simpson … [Edward and Wallis] lived in this beautiful house in France, but we know they were desperately unhappy.”

“Unless [Harry and Meghan] can escape all this negative stuff and find something positive that people are interested in, they will become insignificant in the way that Edward VIII became insignificant and very unhappy.”

King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson in 1942
King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson in 1942 | Ivan Dmitri/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s next move is unclear

Harry and Meghan seemed confident in their decision to leave the family, and they welcomed a second child while living in the United States. They share two kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, and the two seem to have an extremely strong family unit. However, Meghan’s business venture, Archetypes, which was a podcast run through Spotify that featured conversations with different powerful people about stereotypes women face, recently fell through.

Meghan’s podcast did not meet certain benchmarks in terms of the podcast’s productivity, resulting in the deal falling through, per The Wall Street Journal. However, Meghan is also supposedly still working on podcast content with another platform, though little information is known. The couple’s next move remains a mystery. They have to continue bringing in millions in order to support their lifestyle, and they do have a number of elements relating to their Archewell foundation that are probably lucrative, but it seems foggy how the two will continue to make so much money once the royal family flames finally die out.