Prince Harry and Meghan Markle should "turn the page and start a new chapter" by leaning into their public personas as "jokers" and moving on, according to reality star Bethenny Frankel.
In a new TikTok video, posted to her 1.4 million social media followers on Sunday, the former Real Housewives of New York star claimed that the public were now coming around to seeing the critical point of view on the royal couple that she was chastised for taking back in 2020.
On Friday, the couple announced that they had agreed to mutually "part ways" with multi-million-dollar media partner, Spotify, after creating just 13 episodes of podcast content over three years.
Later that day, Bill Simmons, the founder of podcast network The Ringer, who sold to Spotify in 2020 gaining the position of head of podcast innovation and monetization at the platform in the process, shockingly referred to Harry and Meghan as "f****** grifters."
During an episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, the executive and show host, who has previously spoken critically of the couple, said: "I wish I had been involved in the 'Meghan and Harry leave Spotify' negotiation. 'The F****** Grifters.' That's the podcast we should have launched with them...I have got to get drunk one night and tell the story of the Zoom I had with Harry to try and help him with a podcast idea. It's one of my best stories...F*** them. The grifters."
"So I guess now it's cool to refer to Meghan and Harry as 'grifters,'" Frankel told her TikTok followers on Sunday, highlighting Simmons' comments.
"Two years ago I was on the brink of cancellation for saying 'cry me a river', something that is very popular to say right now about Meghan and Harry," she continued, alluding to criticism she faced after tweeting negatively about Meghan ahead of her interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2020. Frankel claims an A-list star called her and told her to apologise for what she had written.
"My advice to them, since they are being advised by Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck is to lean into the fact that you're thought of as jokers," she continued.
"Go on Saturday Night Live and make the joke be about you. Be part of that and then go on social media, whore it out, and turn the page and start a new chapter where you get that you guys f***** up, you thought you could play the media, and lean in and turn a corner."
Newsweek approached representatives of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, as well as Spotify via email regarding the recent comments of Frankel and Simmons.
The news that Harry and Meghan's Archewell Audio podcast production company and Spotify had parted ways comes as the duchess' debut project under the partnership, Archetypes, won a People's Choice Award and a Gracie award.
The show, which aimed to break down labels negatively attributed to women in modern day society, featured interviews with Serena Williams, Mariah Carey and Paris Hilton, together with academics and social justice advocates.
Though this project was received well, it has been overshadowed since by the release of the couple's Netflix show, Harry & Meghan, and the prince's 410-page memoir, Spare.
Both releases were record breakers for their respective media partners, but earned the couple widespread backlash for their bombshell revelations about life behind the palace walls. As a result, the couple saw their popularity on either side of the Atlantic plummet and they became a target for the jokes of comedians, in a way they hadn't been before.
In February, the couple saw their most critical depiction in popular mainstream media yet, when adult animated comedy show South Park dedicated a whole episode to mocking the couple's battles with the media titled: "Worldwide Privacy Tour."
Representatives for Archewell Audio and Spotify said at the time of their split that they "have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together."
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
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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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
