A new feature documentary titled Rebel Royals: An Unlikely Love Story provides an intimate look at the relationship between Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and the American spiritual guide Durek Verrett. The film, now available for global streaming on Netflix, centers on the controversial union of the eldest child of Norway’s King Harald V and the Hollywood-based figure who identifies as a shaman. The documentary’s title frames the narrative as an act of defiance against traditional institutions, a theme that positions its subjects as protagonists challenging established norms and expectations. This framing moves the story beyond typical royal-focused content to a broader examination of individuality clashing with convention, a cultural collision director Rebecca Chaiklin has called a “fish-out-of-water story”.
A Narrative of Love Under Scrutiny
The documentary chronicles the couple’s journey in the period leading up to their August 2024 wedding. Its narrative approach is structured to take viewers behind public headlines, focusing on the personal dynamics of their relationship as they plan their wedding, seek spiritual guidance, and navigate intense media attention and public scrutiny. The film gives the couple a platform to address the controversies they face, framing much of the criticism as rooted in prejudice, specifically racism and a bias against Verrett’s spiritual practices. Verrett speaks directly to the challenges of being the first Black man to marry into a European royal family, while Princess Märtha Louise confronts the perception that she is “brainwashed” and that Verrett is “dangerous for the royal family”. This narrative focus allows the couple to present the public and media response to their union through the lens of their own experiences. The documentary’s structure also borrows from the conventions of celebrity reality television, using the dramatic lead-up to a major life event—the wedding—as its central narrative engine, a format designed for accessibility and mainstream appeal.
The Central Figures in Profile
Princess Märtha Louise is presented with a focus on her evolving role within the Norwegian monarchy. As the eldest child of King Harald V and Queen Sonja, she is fourth in the line of succession. The documentary contextualizes her relationship with Verrett within her longer history of distancing herself from official royal life. In 2002, she relinquished the “Her Royal Highness” style to pursue a private career, and in November 2022, she stepped back from all remaining official duties to create a “clearer dividing line” between her commercial activities and the Royal House. This formal withdrawal from public duties was a necessary step that created the commercial freedom for her to engage in a global media project like this documentary, effectively repositioning her royal status as a marketable media asset. While she retains her title of “Princess” by permission of her father, her career has long involved alternative therapies; she has described herself as a clairvoyant and previously operated a spiritual center known as the “angel school”.
Durek Verrett is identified as a “6th generation shaman” and spiritual guide with a clientele that has included Hollywood celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow. The documentary presents his perspective on his spiritual practice, which he describes as a blend of various global traditions. It also operates as a platform for him to address the significant controversy surrounding his background and beliefs. Public criticism has focused on his pseudoscientific claims, such as the assertion that childhood cancer can be a result of unhappiness, and his promotion of fringe theories, including his self-identification as a “hybrid species of reptilian and Andromeda”. The film provides Verrett an opportunity to manage his public reputation and present his worldview directly to a global audience, sympathetically contextualized within a love story that potentially reframes his more controversial statements as misunderstood aspects of his shamanic practice.
The Creative Team and Production
The documentary is directed by Rebecca Chaiklin, an Emmy-nominated filmmaker known for the series Tiger King. The production team includes Emmy-winning producer Chris Smith, whose credits include FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened and Wham!. The involvement of these particular filmmakers indicates the documentary’s likely tone and scope. Their previous work has focused on charismatic and polarizing figures at the center of media spectacles, suggesting Rebel Royals aims to be more than a straightforward romance. It is positioned as a cultural examination of modern celebrity, belief systems, and the mechanics of media scrutiny. The production companies behind the project are Library Films and Article 19 Films, both with established reputations in documentary storytelling. Chaiklin’s interest in the project was reportedly sparked by a Vanity Fair article, which she stated presented the couple as “unexpected, wild, and charismatic characters”.
Rebel Royals: An Unlikely Love Story premiered globally on Netflix today, September 16, 2025.
