Chip and Joanna Gaines Met With Oprah Via Green Screen, But Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Were There For Real
Veteran talk show host Oprah Winfrey has interviewed thousands of people over the course of her 35 year career. Each of those conversations is different, but one thing the interviews all have in common is the ability to teach viewers something.
Most recently, Oprah sat down with two famous couples back to back, though for very different reasons. A jaw-dropping 17 million people tuned in to watch Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex tell their side of the story about the royal split. Shortly after, Oprah hosted HGTV celebs Chip and Joanna Gaines for a much more lighthearted chat.
The couples couldn’t be more different. But fans are noticing that while the setting looked almost identical, one interview seemed to be live in person while the other was a green screen.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle met Oprah in real life
The global pandemic has made most talk show hosts adapt how they meet with guests. There was a rumor going around that Oprah interviewed Prince Harry and Meghan at her best friend Gayle King’s residence. But an article on Oprah’s website refutes the claim.
Even though Oprah and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are technically neighbors in Santa Barbara, they chose a neutral location to conduct their conversation. It was apparently at Oprah’s friend’s house.
“I’m not going to disclose the friend, because I don’t want people now going to find the friend and the friend’s house,” Oprah said, adding, “But I have friends!”
It’s clear based on footage that the three people are outside, socially distanced, and appear to be in the same location. This also seems logistically possible considering how close they live to each other.
Oprah interviewed Chip and Joanna Gaines remotely
Even though the setting of Oprah’s interview with the Fixer Upper: Welcome Home hosts looks almost identical to the setup with Harry and Meghan, that’s only due to clever editing.
Joanna made no secret of the fact that she met with the talk show host remotely rather than leaving her family in Texas and traveling to California. The interview was made to look like everyone was chatting in a sunny, plant-filled backyard. But Chip and Joanna are actually set up in front of a green screen, which Joanna documented on her Instagram Stories.
“A moment @chipgaines and I will never forget,” Joanna captioned an Instagram photo still from the interview. “Thank you for having us (virtually) in your garden, @oprah. You can watch our conversation from @supersoul on @discoveryplus starting tomorrow!”
The Gaines’ interview with Oprah was much less controversial
Location aside, the chat between Oprah and the Gaineses couldn’t have been more different than the conversation she had with Harry and Meghan. The former HGTV hosts spoke with the talk show host about what inspires them, how they dealt with becoming famous, and what will happen if fans stop being interested in them.
Meanwhile, Oprah’s conversation with Harry and Meghan went much deeper, discussing topics ranging from racism in the royal family to secret feuds. The fallout from their unprecedented conversation is still being felt today.
