‘Suits’ Creator Shared How The Royal Family Controlled Meghan's Role
Before she became the Duchess of Sussex, Megan Markle was building a solid acting career for herself. As Rachel Zane in Suits, it seemed she’d finally found her breakout role. But as Meghan’s romance with Prince Harry got more serious, she was no longer just a regular actress. The royal family started influencing on her role in the show, and they even banned a specific word from the actress’ dialog, a move that baffled the show’s creator.
A blossoming acting career
By the time Meghan joined the cast of Suits in 2011, she boasted over 15 years of experience in the entertainment industry. She made her debut in a 1995 episode of Married with Children, and the future duchess then went on to appear in various other TV shows.
Fans of Fringe, 90210, General Hospital, Castle, or CSI: Miami might remember spotting a young Meghan pop up on their screens! The actress also made her way into some pretty big movies, including Remember Me, Horrible Bosses, and Get Him to the Greek.
The breakout role
While these roles no doubt helped Meghan’s career along, none of them had yet made a bona fide star. But Suits changed all that. A legal dramedy penned by writer-producer Aaron Korsh, it focused on the entertaining exploits of a New York law firm.
Meghan’s character first appeared in the opening season: she played Rachel Zane, a paralegal desperate to make the next step up the career ladder. The actress subsequently starred in over 100 episodes prior to her departure from the show, which she announced in 2017, the year before she married Prince Harry.
“One of the worst auditions I’d ever done”
Mind you, Meghan believes that she came very close to missing out on her big break altogether. “I had gone and auditioned [for Suits] and thought it was one of the worst auditions I’d ever done,” she told Larry King back in 2013.
“I didn’t realize that, behind closed doors, they disagreed with me on that fact and brought me back to test for it,” she added. Instead of feeling instant relief upon getting the part, though, her self-doubt continued to linger.
Overwhelming concern
In fact, all through shooting the first season, Meghan was utterly “convinced” that she’d get the boot. “[I thought about it] all the time,” the Suits star revealed to Variety in 2022.
“It got to a point where the creator was like, ‘Why are you so worried about this?’” Meghan’s nerves ultimately subsided, though, and she gradually settled into her new gig. She began building great reltionships with her colleagues on the show, too.