Prince Harry's recently unveiled account of a physical altercation with his brother, Prince William, has been given the comedy treatment by Jimmy Kimmel.
In a leaked extract from his soon-to-be-released memoir Spare, which was published by British newspaper The Guardian on Thursday, Harry describes an incident which allegedly took place at London's Kensington Palace in 2019 with his brother and left him with "scrapes and bruises" after a clash about Meghan Markle.
In his account, Harry says that William described Meghan as "difficult", "rude" and "abrasive"—something the duke of Sussex describes as a "parrot[ing of] the press narrative" about his wife.
Per The Guardian, Harry writes that William became violent after being offered a glass of water and being told: "Willy, I can't speak to you when you're like this."
He continued: "He set down the water, called me another name, then came at me. It all happened so fast. So very fast. He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor.
"I landed on the dog's bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out."
On Thursday night, comedian Kimmel posted a video sketch on Twitter showing a comedic reenactment of the fight, titled "Two Princes."
The video showed two actors dressed to resemble late musician Prince during the Purple Rain era of his career as they stood in a kitchen.
As an excerpt of the book was heard in the voiceover, the cast members dramatically acted out each portion, with the two exchanging frenzied slaps before the video's version of Harry was pushed to the ground on top of the dog's bowl.
A line was added that William "mocked" Harry as he was on the floor, prompting the aggressor in the skit to quote one of Prince's enduring hits when he quipped: "This is what it sounds like when doves cry!"
After the sketch's Harry told his brother to get out, another line was added that quoted the injured royal as saying: "Then I made him face the music."
The spoof version of Harry then proceeded to play a Prince guitar solo as William covered his ears in apparent distress.
As the scene came to an end, the camera zoomed in on a calendar dated December 2018, which featured a photo of their late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, who was also dressed in purple.
Reacting to the post, one Twitter user commented: "The book excerpts I've read so far is comedy gold. So many to choose from."
"Thought it would be in happening the 7th season of The Crown, but Jimmy Kimmel saved the day," wrote another.
Another described the skit as "excruciatingly funny & cringe making at the same time. Harry's kids will have to live with his book for the rest of their lives. & this kind of thing. Funny but also very sad."
However, one Twitter user denounced the sketch, tweeting, in part: "It's low of you to make fun if physical violence!"
Harry's account of the incident ends with William allegedly apologizing before telling his brother "You don't need to tell Meg about this," and adding "I didn't attack you, Harold," when accused of doing so.
According to the excerpt, Harry called his therapist about the altercation but did not discuss it with Meghan until she noticed the "scrapes and bruises" on his back.
Ahead of Spare's official release on January 10, Harry has recorded two sit-down interviews to air on Sunday January 8 on both sides of the Atlantic.
In a short clip released to promote his interview with Britain's ITV network, Harry told anchor Tom Bradby that he desires a family rapprochement, saying: "I would like to get my father back, I would like to have my brother back."
This followed a statement in which he said an unidentified "they" had so far "shown absolutely no willingness to reconcile."
In the U.S. the prince recorded his interview with Anderson Cooper for a CBS 60 Minutes special. During a pre-released clip for this, he described how members of the royal family regard their famed "never complain, never explain" motto in relation to the Sussexes' public revelations.
"You know, the family motto is 'never complain, never explain'—it's just a motto," he said before agreeing with Cooper said that on the contrary there was "endless" complaining and explaining to the British press.
Prince Harry's memoir Spare is set to be released globally on January 10.
Newsweek has reached out to Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace and representatives of Prince Harry and Penguin Random House for comment.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
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