New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern only learned that she was in Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's new Netflix docu-series, Live to Lead, when she saw the trailer along with the rest of the world.

Harry, 38, and Meghan, 41, dropped the clip on Monday, which teased the upcoming show, which looks at at some of the most influential leaders throughout history, and is inspired by Nelson Mandela.

The series, released on 31 December, is being produced by Blackwell & Ruth in association with The Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Sussexes’ production company, Archewell and Cinetic Media.

Harry and Meghan's choice of world leaders to include are New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, social justice attorney and advocate Bryan Stevenson and U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The show will also include features from leaders in sectors other than politics, like climate activist Greta Thunberg and feminist activist Gloria Steinem.

An interview that Jacinda, 42, did with the Nelson Mandela Foundation in 2019 was shown in the trailer, and Jacinda said that she was only aware of the decision to include it in the documentary when the trailer came out.

Despite this, she said she "stood by" the interview and the Foundation's right to use it as they saw fit.

However, Jacinda has shut down any idea that she might have collaborated with the Sussexes on the project, saying that she had had no "direct" contact with them.

Jacinda said: "They were producing resources for future leaders with the focus on young leaders. I’ve not been involved in the decision-making around what happens next and I have not had direct contact with the Sussexes."

Jacinda added that her office only became aware of the documentary in May, however she had "not stayed close" to those communications.

"So I became aware of what was happening with it yesterday."

The New Zealand PM has clearly inspired Prince Harry and Meghan, as the words: "Their leadership inspires our future," could be seen before her face flashed up on the screen.

Jacinda's office has been rather outspoken about distancing her from Harry and Meghan's latest project, as they released an official statement when the trailer dropped, which insisted that there had been no direct communications with Harry and Meghan or their team.

The Live to Lead docu-series comes hot on the heels of Harry and Meghan's self-titled six-part documentary that addressed their sensational exit from the royal family in 2020.

It covered everything from how they first met to their first date and love story, before going on to talk about their reasons for leaving the royal family, including some loaded barbs at Harry's immediate family, such as Meghan saying that the family's formality extends well beyond public view, and Harry saying that his brother Prince William "screamed" at him during the now-infamous 'Sandringham Summit'.

Harry and Meghan's megabucks deal with streaming giant Netflix is said to be worth $100million, which is just shy of around £83million.

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