They were images designed to proclaim that Meghan really hadn't fallen out with the deep-pocketed bosses at Netflix.

But this week, four out of five photographs of the Duchess of Sussex cuddling up to the streamer's head honcho, Ted Sarandos, and his wife, Nicole Avant, have mysteriously disappeared.

Insiders say that all the pictures - from an event to celebrate the second series of the hit TV show Beef - were taken on Friday afternoon last week in California.

A number were approved for release by Netflix, and were duly made available to media around 24 hours later, via the Getty picture agency.

They showed Meghan with her arm around Sarandos, the two of them apparently sharing a joke, and Avant being clasped in a tight embrace by the duchess.

Reaction was highly negative, with the images described as 'cringeworthy'. Online commentators claimed that Meghan looked 'needy' and 'desperate' to claim a friendship with the powerful couple following reports that Sarandos had tired of the Sussexes.

Some also thought that the images, in which Meghan wore a green silk dress, were unflattering.

Neither Netflix nor the Sussexes were willing to explain why the pictures from the weekend have been quietly expunged from the Getty agency website.

The only picture that remains is a line-up shot of Harry, Meghan, Sarandos and Avant.

Notably, all of the pictures in which the duchess was in physical contact with the couple were removed.

A Getty spokesperson said: 'Those images were shot for Netflix and they have asked for them to be removed, so we can no longer license them.'

An insider said that all pictures taken at Netflix events by Getty would be approved by the streamer, generally at the end of the event. A delay of 24 hours in posting images was seen as unusual and suggests that the client (Netflix) was taking pains not to cause any offense to guests.

A post-publication request to remove pictures is 'highly unusual, if not unheard of', says a source, who added that it was their belief that the request could only have come from the Sussexes, who are touchy about their public image.

The circumstances of the disappearance recall the removal, after two days, of images of Harry and Meghan attending the birthday party of Kardashian matriarch Kris Jenner on the eve of Remembrance Sunday last year.

The Beverly Hills bash, at the home of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, was held the night before members of the royal family gathered at the Cenotaph in London to remember those who gave their lives in conflict.

Kim Kardashian later told a podcast they had been informed 'it was totally cool to post', adding: 'Mom and Meghan have been friends for some years now, and they have a really sweet relationship.

'After it was posted, I think they realized it was Remembrance Day, and they didn't want to be seen at a party, even though it's already up, you know, and then taken down.'

The question of how warmly Netflix regards Meghan and Harry is controversial.

The Sussexes were snapped up by Netflix in an exclusive production deal reportedly worth $100 million, not long after quitting their life as working royals in September 2020.

The deal led to the blockbuster score-settling series Harry & Meghan, and also to Prince Harry's vastly less successful documentary about polo. There were also two series and one 'holiday special' of the lifestyle show With Love, Meghan.

Last summer, their exclusive deal was downgraded to a 'first look' arrangement, and this year, Netflix announced that after one year as a commercial partner with accompanying lifestyle brand As Ever, they were stepping away from that as well, amid reports of '$10 million' of unsold stock.

Meghan's team released a statement to say that the parting of ways was always intended, and that the jam and wine label had enjoyed 'meaningful and rapid success'.

A bombshell report in Variety magazine last month said that Netflix was 'done' with the Sussexes and added that Sarandos had said he wasn't willing to speak to Meghan without a lawyer present. Netflix and a lawyer for the duchess denied this was true.

However, sources at Netflix said that the streamer was 'broadly' done with the couple and added that the experiment with the As Ever brand had not been a commercial success. It then emerged that Sarandos does not follow Meghan or the brand As Ever on Instagram.

He did not post any of the pictures from the Beef event, where the Sussexes were guests, on his page this week.