The Royal Family Forbade Meghan Markle From Saying This Line in ‘Suits’

Many members of the British royal family are used to being in the public eye, but Meghan Markle‘s journey through fame has been different than most. Rather than spend her time attending boarding schools and socializing in preparation for a life in the proverbial spotlight, Markle was in the literal spotlight of Hollywood as a star on the television series Suits. 

Markle and Prince Harry’s eventual decision to renounce the royal life highlighted several conflicts in attempting to fit the royal mold, and the signs of tension were present early on. In fact, the royal family went so far as to censor some of Markle’s intended lines on Suits. 

Meghan Markle met Prince Harry while filming ‘Suits’

When Markle and Prince Harry first began dating, she was living in Toronto and working on the set of Suits, a legal drama that ran from 2011 to 2019. 

According to Elle, Markle and Prince Harry were introduced by a mutual friend and first “met” on Instagram in the summer of 2016 before taking things to the phone and then eventually to an in-person date — to which Prince Harry was 30 minutes late! By November 2016, the tabloids were all over the budding relationship, and Markle was getting acquainted with the complexities of dating a royal. 

A year later, they announced their engagement, and their May 2018 wedding was a celebration of epic proportions. Their children, allegations of mistreatment by the Royal Family, and eventual departure from their royal roles (and a move to the States) have kept the pair in the headlines ever since. 

The Royal Family nixed a specific word from ‘Suits’ dialogue

By the time that Markle and Prince Harry’s relationship had become decidedly public, the Royal Family was weighing in on Markle’s dialogue in Suits. With an image to uphold, they had a vested interest in making sure that Markle didn’t spark controversy. 

The show’s creator Aaron Korsh spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about the experience: “it was a little irritating.” One particular line he remembered being cut by the family was personal to him. “My wife’s family,” he explained, “when they have a topic to discuss that might be sensitive, they use the word, ‘poppycock.'”

One scene had Markle using the term, but the Royal Family took issue: “the royal family did not want her saying the word. They didn’t want to put the word ‘poppycock’ in her mouth. I presume because they didn’t want people cutting things together of her saying ‘cock.’ So, we had to change it to ‘bullshit’ instead of ‘poppycock,’ and I did not like it because I’d told my in-laws that [poppycock] was going to be in the show.”

‘Suits’ is seeing a resurgence

Although Suits went off the air four years ago, it has seen a recent resurgence and is currently streaming on Netflix. 

Time sees the series as “the perfect binge show” and pointed to it as “the kind of middlebrow TV networks don’t make anymore.” It has become especially popular during the writers’ strike, which has delayed many new shows from airing. The series is “the perfect background show. Not only does it run for nearly 84 hours, but it strikes the perfect balance between drama and predictability.” 

While Markle’s rise to fame in the years since the show’s conclusion has certainly added to the prestige and brought in a new audience, there’s something to be said for the show itself. 

Fans — new and returning — can also have some fun with the later season as they try to guess what dialogue may have been doctored up by the Crown!