Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have denied the allegations made against them in a Vanity Fair article that painted the Duke as naive and the Duchess as a calculated "'Mean Girls' teenager." Sources close to the couple have described the report, titled American Hustle, as "distressing.”
The piece, published on January 17, focuses on Harry and Meghan's "big business ambitions" five years after they stepped down as working royals and moved to Montecito, California. It includes accounts from neighbors and people professionally linked to the couple who allege disrespectful behavior by them.
Highlights
- Meghan and Harry have denied accusations made against them by neighbors and former employees.
- Insiders claim that the Vanity Fair article has made "a bad time worse" for Sussexes.
- The accusations include claims that Meghan bullied her staff and that Harry has a "challenging" personality.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have reacted to the "distressing" accusations made against them in a recent Vanity Fair article
Image credits: Eric Charbonneau/Archewell Foundation
The Sussexes have dismissed the former employees' allegations, with sources close to the couple calling them "distressing," as per The Times.
"'Things aren't easy for them right now," an insider told The Daily Beast. "Vanity Fair have succeeded in making a bad time worse."
One source who worked with Meghan on media projects claimed she followed a pattern with her employees. At the beginning, she was "warm and effusive," creating an atmosphere of "professional camaraderie."
However, when something went poorly, she became "cold and withholding toward the person she perceived to be responsible," the source said.
Image credits: Vanity Fair
They described working on her 2022 Archetypes podcast as "really awful," and said that the Duchess is "constantly playing checkers" with her workers.
"She's just very aware of where everybody is on her board. And when you are not in, you are to be thrown to the wolves at any given moment.
"It's talking behind your back. It's gnawing at your sense of self. Really, like, 'Mean Girls' teenager."
At first, the source refused to believe the reports that Meghan "bullied" palace aides before moving to California, but soon realized that "at any given Tuesday, this happened."
The article includes accounts from their Montecito neighbors and individuals who have worked with the Sussexes
Image credits: Chris Jackson/Getty Images
A separate source who worked with Meghan also accused the 43-year-old mom of mistreating employees.
"You can be yelled at even if somebody doesn't raise their voice. [It's] funny that people don't differentiate between the energy of being yelled at and literally somebody screaming at you."
The Vanity Fair report cites two sources who claim a colleague who worked on Archetypes took a leave of absence and then quit after working on three episodes.
Others described taking extended breaks "to escape scrutiny" or having long-term therapy as a result of working with the Duchess.
Image credits: Netflix
"I think if Meghan acknowledged her own shortcomings or personal contributions to situations, rather than staying trapped in a victim narrative, her perception might be better," one source stated.
Though rumors began circulating that the former actress had been approached to write a "post-divorce" book, this was never part of the Duchess's plans. According to an insider, the couple's "love is real," and they are still "so hot for each other."
The source described Harry as "very personable, very at ease with people, quite like Diana" and said he makes people feel very comfortable.
"He's so protective of [Meghan] because people are so nasty to her," they added.
Accusations included Meghan acting like a "'Mean Girls' teenager" who disrespected employees and Harry being "challenging" to deal with
Image credits: Netflix
The Sussexes were recently seen hugging victims of the California wildfires and distributing warm meals to survivors. They've also donated money, clothes, children's items, and other essential supplies through their charity, the Archewell Foundation.
Meghan postponed the premiere of her cooking show, With Love, Meghan, from January 15 to March 4 to focus on supporting those affected by the fires.
"They have this naivete and their hopefulness about what's possible in terms of storytelling and good works and all those things," said Jane Marie, a producer who worked with the couple on audio projects at Archewell. "I wish I had that kind of optimism."
"They have this naivete and their hopefulness about what's possible in terms of storytelling and good works," said Jane Marie, a producer who worked with the couple
Image credits: FOX 11 Los Angeles
According to a former Spotify employee who worked with the couple on their 2020 deal with the platform, they "didn't do what celebrities do on podcasts, which is turn on the mic and talk. They wanted a big theme that would explain the world, but they had no ideas."
One of the ideas that Harry allegedly wanted to try was a "sociopath podcast" where he would interview world-famous men with difficult stories, including Donald Trump, Mark Zuckerberg, and Vladimir Putin.
Image credits: Archewell
"I have very bad childhood trauma. Obviously. My mother was essentially murdered. What is it about me that didn't make me one of the bad guys?" one source told the magazine, recalling Harry's motivation for the show.
The ex-Spotify employee said the duke was "challenging to engage" with, while the magazine quotes someone who worked with Harry on an event during his Spare book tour as having "the greatest manners" and being "unfailingly kind and friendly to everyone."
Though a neighbor referred to the couple as "entitled," Montecito resident Sharon Stone previously said they were a "participating part" of the community
Image credits: Gilbert Flores/GG2025/Penske Media
Meghan has vehemently denied the bullying claims made by formal royal staffers, referring to them as a "calculated smear campaign based on misleading and harmful information."
One Montecito resident stated that the couple were "the most entitled, disingenuous people on the planet."
"They moved away from England to get away from the scrutiny of the press, and all they do is try and get the press in the United States."
In light of the damning allegations in the Vanity Fair piece, friends of the duke and duchess reportedly pointed to comments made by a fellow Montecito resident, Sharon Stone, who spoke fondly of them in 2020.
Image credits: Netflix
"They're a part of our community; they've become a giving, caring, participating part of our community," the actress told Hello Magazine. "They're not here to be like, 'Would you like to kiss my butt?'"
"They didn't come here to live off of our community, they came here to be a part of our community," she added.
"My friend said she was sitting in her car and they bicycled across the street and waved at her while she was sitting at the red light."
People were divided over the recent accusations published in the American Hustle article
