Theo James has blunt response to Meghan Markle’s potential ‘The Gentlemen’ role

The Gentlemen star Theo James has once again laughed off speculation that Meghan Markle will be joining the show for season three.

The second instalment of the Guy Ritchie series dropped on Netflix this past week, as Eddie Horniman's criminal escapades branched out beyond the country estate of Halstead to Italy.

Ahead of its release, speculation grew in late August that Meghan Markle was set to return to acting and could be cast in the upcoming third season of The Gentlemen.

Though the rumours were quickly shot down, with some cast members believing it was just a 'genius marketing’ ploy, it hasn't stopped the cast from being repeatedly asked about it.

When James was asked if an ex-royal could be joining him on the show, he joked that Sarah Ferguson was set to be his on-screen partner.

"Yes, Fergie is joining," he told Town&Country. "She'll be playing my love interest."

Taking a more serious approach with a Lampardian transition, James then dismissed the speculation.

“No, I think that was mainly a lot of hot air," he continued.

"At the moment, we’re just trying to get as many eyes on season two, and then season three will happen soon.

"But in terms of story, we have the overarching ambition of where we’re going to go. We’re going to expand the world, go to different countries. But in terms of the minutiae.

"I mean, it’s still very much up in the air."

Meghan Markle was rumoured to be joining the cast (Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP via Getty Images)

What has been said about Meghan Markle joining The Gentlemen

Markle, the experienced Suits star, is no stranger to the bright lights, and the rumours coincided with her and Prince Harry's return to the UK from California.

Fuel was thrown onto the fire when Manda Levin, the Director of Scripted Series in the UK for Netflix, was asked about the speculation and replied: “All bets are off.”

However, two days later, it was reported that Netflix had dropped Markle due to a 'backlash' in the UK.

Tina Brown, the former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, wrote in a column on Substack: “I learned this morning that the casting of Meghan Markle in season 3 of Guy Ritchie’s Netflix series The Gentlemen has been withdrawn.

"The backlash in the UK was so intense, it became untenable to go forward. This does not bode well for Meghan’s acting comeback in the UK.”

Several members of The Gentlemen's cast have been asked about Markle potentially joining them, with all of them dismissing it.

James has even made the same royal quip in another interview by swapping Ferguson out for Prince Harry.

The cast of The Gentlemen (Wiktor Szymanowicz/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“No. Prince Harry is playing one of my love interests,” he told Extra TV. “So that’s the Meghan Markle thing.”

“I think it’s spurious rumours,” he also told PA.

“I think she’d fit in well because she’s actually from part of the royal family.

“But no, I think the practicalities of that are impossible.”

New cast member for the second series, Hugh Bonneville, believed it was a fantastic bit of PR to raise the show's profile, saying: “I think it’s a genius piece of marketing by whoever just dreamt up that idea."

Ray Winestone, who plays Robert ‘Bobby’ Glass in the show, joked: “I don’t even know if I’m doing [the third season]” while Vinnie Jones, who plays Geoff Seacombe, also branded the rumours as ‘hot air’.

One new cast member for season two, though, is Maya Jama, who has divided audiences in her acting debut.