VF: Duchess Meghan apparently ‘undermined’ her staff like a ‘Mean Girls teenager’

Last September, the Hollywood Reporter published a bizarre piece in its “Rambling Reporter” column called “Why Hollywood Keeps Quitting on Harry and Meghan.” The piece read like a Daily Mail hit-piece circa 2018, all about how Meghan storms around the Archewell office in high heels, barking orders and making grown men cry because she’s such a “bully.” The piece was so bizarre and so nasty, it inspired the Sussexes and the Archewell team to actually respond and organize an Us Weekly cover story in which multiple Archewell staffers (current and former) went on the record about how Meghan. They said Meghan is a lovely boss and she isn’t a bully and they enjoy the work they’re doing. The people pushing the “Meghan is a bully” agenda were really mad about that Us Weekly story, remember? They were mad that people went on the record about Meghan and said she was generous and kind. Well, the butthurt people decided to take their unnamed-source asses to Vanity Fair to once again push the agenda. Some excerpts from Vanity Fair’s Sussex cover story:

A former Harpo executive quit because of Meghan? Terry Wood, an executive vice president at Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Productions, was brought in to be what Meghan would later call her “right hand” when Archetypes won a People’s Choice Award in 2022. The source familiar with the production of Archetypes describes Wood’s anger, saying that she yelled at Spotify staffers when Meghan changed her mind about episodes. (Wood did not respond to VF’s request for comment.)

Meghan’s work patterns: The source who worked in media projects says Meghan’s own relationships with employees tended to follow a familiar pattern. She would be warm and effusive at the beginning, engendering an atmosphere of professional camaraderie. When something went poorly, often due to Meghan and Harry’s own demands—such as a teaser for Archetypes being released five months before the show premiered and before there was any tape to promote—Meghan would become cold and withholding toward the person she perceived to be responsible. The source says it was “really, really, really awful. Very painful. Because she’s constantly playing checkers—I’m not even going to say chess—but she’s just very aware of where everybody is on her board. And when you are not in, you are to be thrown to the wolves at any given moment.” In practice, they say, that manifested as “undermining. It’s talking behind your back. It’s gnawing at your sense of self. Really, like, Mean Girls teenager.” Marie had a different experience with Meghan: “She’s just a lovely, genuine person,” she said.

Meghan yells without yelling!! The person who worked in media projects read stories in the tabloids about Meghan “bullying” palace aides and couldn’t imagine such behavior actually happened. After working with her, though, this person realized, “Oh, any given Tuesday this happened.” While it beggars belief that Meghan actually shouted at a palace aide, as has been reported, a person who interacted with her professionally says, “You can be yelled at even if somebody doesn’t raise their voice. [It’s] funny that people don’t differentiate between the energy of being yelled at and literally somebody screaming at you.”

People needed therapy after working with Meghan? Two sources say a colleague with ties to Archetypes took a leave of absence after working on three episodes, then left Gimlet altogether. Several others described taking extended breaks from work to escape scrutiny, exiting their job, or undergoing long-term therapy after working with Meghan. The person who interacted professionally with her says, “I think if Meghan acknowledged her own shortcomings or personal contributions to situations rather than staying trapped in a victim narrative, her perception might be better.” They added, with the soggy laugh of a plebe rendering judgment on the Duchess of Sussex, “But who am I to criticize Meghan Markle? She’s doing great.”

[From Vanity Fair]

I’ve always been a person who trusts my gut-level instincts about celebrities (and I’m right about 99% of the time). I play a little game of “can I imagine this person doing what they’re accused of?” With all of the Meghan-is-a-bully stories, I’ve never been able to picture it or believe it whatsoever. The stories run contrary to her energy and everything we know about her. The whole “she yells at people without yelling at them” thing is… just odd. What are we doing here, really? What is she actually being accused of again? Like the British stories, no one has any specifics. She throws people to the wolves! Okay, how? She’s a Mean Girl! What are the specific Mean Girl antics? She undermined me! She’s your boss – are you sure she wasn’t just handing you a task? I needed long-term therapy after working on her podcast for a month! Are you being serious right now? Don’t you understand, she’s Black! Is it really that simple?

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Instar, Backgrid. Cover courtesy of Vanity Fair.