Meghan Markle claims 'guilt' over having too much money as experts accuse her of being inauthentic

Fox News

4 days ago

Meghan Markle's podcast "Confessions of a Female Founder" wrapped Tuesday, leaving several royal experts wondering if it will be renewed for a new season.
No official announcement of a season 2 has been formally made. Fox News Digital reached out to Archewell, which handles the office for the Duchess of Sussex, for comment.
Meghan made headlines with comments about money in the final episode. "I think so many women, especially, we're taught to not even talk about money, and there's lots of guilt mentality surrounding having a lot," the Duchess of Sussex said, as quoted by People magazine. "And at the same time, there's a scarcity mindset that it's easy to attach to, of like, 'I'll never have enough.'"
The Duchess of Sussex was having a sit-down with Sara Blakely, who became a billionaire after creating Spanx.
Doug Eldridge, a branding expert and the founder of Achilles PR, claimed to Fox News Digital that the former American actress' "confessions" from this past season only continue to brand the former American actress as "inauthentic."
"The personal revelations were inevitable but terribly inauthentic," Eldridge told Fox News Digital. "It's like humidity – you can't see it, but you feel it and it's undeniable. For Meghan, this was a tactic to try and become more relatable to her audience, but you can't fake authenticity; you either have it or you don't. This has been an ongoing struggle for her."
"In terms of the royal family, her indirect references continue to hurt her with the target audience," Eldridge claimed.
"The perpetual use of the 'victim card' has backfired," he claimed. "Over a long enough timeline, the cracks in the story – coupled with the past allegations of her mistreatment of staff – have turned into gaping fissures."
"Not only does this fail to move the ball forward for Meghan, but it's akin to a series of self-inflicted holding penalties; she started at midfield, but now she's back on her one-yard line," Eldridge added.
Markle's comments about money got a big reaction from listeners. The royal couple is far from struggling in California.
Forbes previously reported that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex signed a five-year, $100 million contract with Netflix in 2020. That year, they splurged on a $14.7 million home in the wealthy, coastal city of Montecito, the outlet reported.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020.
In 2021, Meghan's husband, Prince Harry, told Oprah Winfrey in a televised tell-all that the royal family "literally cut me off financially" after their royal exit. The 40-year-old noted that he had money left to him by his late mother, Princess Diana.
"Without that, we wouldn't have been able to do this," said the prince, referring to the couple's California move. While they signed deals with Netflix and Spotify after their exit, Harry told the talk show mogul "that was never part of the plan."
In the final episode of her podcast, the mother of two also described the difficulties she faced in running a business. She originally launched her lifestyle company as American Riviera Orchard in March 2024, but rebranded it to As Ever in February 2025 due to reported trademark woes. She partnered with Netflix, which premiered her lifestyle series, "With Love, Meghan" in March of this year.
"I was gonna do it all by myself, took a complete U-turn because I really believe in what Netflix and their CPG department are doing, but it is a different experience than if you're doing it on your own," said the 43-year-old. "When you only have yourself to answer to, I think it's twofold: It can be incredibly liberating, it can be incredibly lonely."
During that same episode, the "Suits" alum spoke about her pregnancy as a working royal. She gave birth to her son, Prince Archie, in 2019, while they were still working royals.
"I always wear my five-inch, pointy-toed stilettos," said Meghan about her past maternity style.
She noted that a friend remarked to her, "You have the most enormous bump, and your tiny little ankles are bracing themselves in these high heels.'"
"But all my weight was in the front," said Meghan. "So you're just going, 'How on Earth am I not just tipping, you know, face planting?' I was clinging very closely to my husband, like, 'Please don't let me fall.'"
In a previous episode, Meghan also admitted that royal motherhood didn't go according to plan.
"I will say, for myself, especially when they are baby babies, and before I was a mom, I've always wanted to be a mom," she said. "I was like, 'Oh gosh, I'm going to give a speech with a baby on my hip.' I had a whole vision. Granted, I had a lot of external things happening by the time I had both pregnancies and both babies. But it was not the way I envisioned it."
Following Meghan's statements, Eldridge is adamant that her relatable role isn't convincing.
"The ongoing struggle for Meghan has been authenticity," he said. "If you want ad dollars, you need eyeballs. If you want eyeballs, you need connection. If you want connection, you need relatability. If you want relatability, you need authenticity. You have to follow the blueprint as it's laid out. You can't skip steps, take shortcuts or devalue certain variables. If you do, your structure will never have a solid foundation, and without that, you have nothing."
"My brand advice has been evergreen: drop the act, quit the victim marketing and just be yourself," said Eldridge. "The show and podcast were your chance to do just that, yet most viewers seem to think you've rolled another gutter ball."
British royal expert Hilary Fordwich claimed to Fox News Digital that the podcast just didn't have "Markle Sparkle" to prompt a second season. It's noted that unlike her previous podcast "Archetypes" on Spotify, which had an all-star guest list, "Confessions," is focused on conversations with female entrepreneurs.
But it's the star power that will attract a wider audience, Fordwich insisted.
"Given the dearth of high-profile guests… a future series looks unlikely," Fordwich claimed. "Not only has she failed to attract marquee names, but her show has also received harsh criticism due to being so shallow, yet again self-focused and lacking substantive business acumen. She has failed to deliver beneficial advice to the audience."
"Her conversations are centered on her own narrative," Fordwich claimed. "She fails to probe her guests who could share valid experiences and/or practical tips… There has [also] been an overall lack of media buzz… Her inauthenticity has rendered her unpopular on both sides of the Atlantic… She's had a rather privileged background… and yet her [comments] rang hollow, undermining her very own efforts to connect with even her own fans."
"Her podcasting career is uncertain with her plummeting popularity… without significant changes," Fordwich added.
WATCH: MEGHAN MARKLE WILL NEVER WIN OVER UK PUBLIC AGAIN, AUTHOR CLAIMS
Eldridge said it's "difficult to say" what Meghan's future as a business woman is or what her podcast will look like if she doesn't revamp her image.
"If Meghan is still trying to find herself and her voice, then it's going to be nearly impossible to disambiguate who her audience is," warned Eldridge. "You need gasoline and oil – authenticity and audience. Right now, Meghan has neither."
Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Fox News Digital that there's no doubt Meghan has more in store for audiences. He pointed out that new episodes of "With Love, Meghan" will premiere this fall. Still, "Confessions" needs more – much more.
"Her previous podcast 'Archetypes'… did better than 'Confessions,'" he said. "It needed Beyoncé and Taylor Swift or their equivalent… Maybe this shows that Meghan really isn't interesting enough."
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex parted ways with Spotify in 2023. Meghan partnered with Lemonada Media in 2024, leading to the launch of "Confessions."
Royal expert Ian Pelham Turner sees things differently.
"Meghan is a born survivor," he told Fox News Digital. "With Harry and the children by her side, she will find natural ways of engaging with her audience. She is the type of royal that ethnic communities in Britain long for to represent them… Her natural qualities will come out on top."
Eldridge stressed that if Meghan wants to succeed as a solo act, she needs to first understand who her audience is.
"The production cost of a podcast is demonstrably lower than a lifestyle show like she has with Netflix," he explained. "That said, if the listener numbers aren't there for the podcast, she won't have the advertisers and that is ultimately the oil that keeps the engine running. The listeners and guests are the proverbial gasoline that keeps the vehicle moving forward, but without the lubrication of ad dollars, the pistons lock up, and you're on the side of the road."
"It remains to be seen whether Meghan will move into the HOV lane with season 2, or be left on the shoulder with her blinkers on," he added.