Oprah Winfrey denies advising Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on royal exit: They 'do not need my help'
Oprah Winfrey has nothing to do with Megxit.
While the OWN honcho is excited for what the future holds for her friends Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, she denies advising them on their post-royal life. The denial comes after a report stated that Winfrey — who attended their 2018 wedding — encouraged them to move to North America and build their own powerful brand.
“I care about them both and support whatever decision they make for their family,” Winfrey said in a statement to the New York Post’s Page Six.
However, she added, “Meg and Harry do not need my help figuring out what is best for them.”
While Harry hammers out the plan for them to step down as senior members of the royal family in “emergency meetings,” it seems the couple is already hard at work planning what is to come. While they haven’t revealed exactly how they will become “financially independent,” it has been revealed that have trademarked “Sussex Royal” as a brand on more than 100 properties in the U.K., including clothing, stationery, photos and charitable endeavors — with a predicted revenue of over $500 million. (And that’s only in the U.K.)
Harry teamed up with Winfrey on an upcoming mental health series for Apple TV+ — but there has been speculation their conversations extended beyond that. The Fox News report that Winfrey, who is also friends with Markle’s mother, denied had a source saying, “Oprah was the first person to talk to Harry and Meghan about breaking free and doing their own thing, building on their own brand. She made them realize it was really possible.”
According to that same report, Harry and Meghan, a former actress, have also kept a keen eye on what Barack and Michelle Obama have done in their post-White House life in terms of producing their own documentaries and shows, book deals in addition to their philanthropic efforts.
Meanwhile, Page Six also reports that Winfrey’s BFF, CBS’s Gayle King, is securing the first post-Megxit interview with Harry and Meghan. Like Winfrey, she is also friendly with the pair and attended the Suits actress’s NYC baby shower ahead of Archie’s arrival.
“It’s hush-hush,” a source told the gossip column of the interview, “but there’s no one else they would turn to.”
But there’s still much to be decided about that exit and when it will be happening. On Thursday, Markle returned to Canada to reunite with Archie while Harry met with the royal family, who are reportedly feeling bitterness over the couple’s possibly unsanctioned announcement. However, a friend of the couple, journalist Tom Bradby, who interviewed them for Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, said they feel Harry and Meghan are the ones feeling like they’re “being driven out” by the royal family.
“There’ve been a lot of fallouts; a lot of harsh things were said around the time of the wedding,” Bradby said in an interview Thursday. “And it’s gone a bit too far. And certainly, the rest of the family find Harry and Meghan very difficult and, from Harry and Meghan’s point of view, they’re just being driven out as they see it. And it’s sad.”
Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:
Jillian Michaels stands by controversial comments about Lizzo’s weight: ‘I am a health expert!’
Leonardo DiCaprio assisted in boat rescue of a drowning man near St. Barts
Want daily pop culture news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Entertainment & Lifestyle’s newsletter.