A few weeks ago, the Hollywood Reporter published their annual list of winners & losers of the year. THR declared that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were two of the “losers” of the year because of a “whiny Netflix documentary, a whiny biography (Spare — even the title is a pouty gripe) and an inert podcast” and that Brand Sussex had “swelled into a sanctimonious bubble just begging to be popped — and South Park was the pin.” It was truly a bizarre take from one of the leading industry magazines, and it felt like it was written by Camilla Tominey or some Daily Mail hack.
Well, it gets even more bizarre. THR has now released their “2023 Hollywood Yearbook,” the idea being that Hollywood is like high school, and that THR can hand out the yearbook superlatives. THR names Travis Kelce & Taylor Swift as the Prom King and Queen, lists Bob Iger as “Worst Homecoming Performance,” and then the magazine took yet another swipe at the Sussexes with this:
LEAST PRIVATE PRIVACY ADVOCATES
Harry and MeghanAfter the Oprah Winfrey interview, the best-selling memoir, the Netflix series, and the (canceled) Spotify podcast, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex could try looking under rocks to reach the few people who haven’t yet heard their appeals to be left alone.
What does the Hollywood Reporter think they’re doing here? The rest of the list is much more topical and actually about what happened during the year within the industry, with the WGA and SAG strikes, the success of Barbenheimer, the Marvel bubble bursting, etc. The inclusion of the Sussexes – and in such a negative way – sticks out like a sore thumb. Beyond that, where are these “appeals to be left alone”? There was a privacy narrative, set by the palace, back in 2019-2020, but beyond that, they haven’t said anything about “wanting privacy” for years. Something really insidious is happening. Especially after Harry’s huge legal victory against the Mirror Group, a media company which hacked him and criminally invaded his privacy.
Class of 2023 THR Superlatives: After the Oprah Winfrey interview, the memoir, the Netflix series and the Spotify podcast, Harry and Meghan could try looking under rocks to reach the few people who haven’t yet heard their appeals to be left alone https://t.co/4Jm7idXBDa pic.twitter.com/zXBtA2vR2l
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) December 19, 2023
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
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- The Duke of Sussex, sits next to the Duchess of Sussex, as he reacts to the action whilst having his picture taken by a fan at the sitting volleyball competition on field one at the Merkur Spiel-Arena during the Invictus Games Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 14 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- The Duke and Duchess of Sussex watch the sitting volleyball competition on field one at the Merkur Spiel-Arena during the Invictus Games Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 14 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrive to watch sitting volleyball at the Merkur Spiel-Arena during the Invictus Games Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 15 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex during day 6 of Invictus Games 2023 at the Merkur Spiel-Arena Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 15 Sep 2023 Credit: Dutch Press Photo/Cover Images **NOT AVAILABLE FOR PUBLICATION IN THE NETHERLANDS OR FRANCE**
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- The Duke and Duchess of Sussex meet Ukrainian athlete Yuliia Paievska during a medal ceremony at the Invictus Games Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex meet Ukrainian athlete Yuliia Paievska Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 15 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Closing ceremony of the Invictus Games. Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 16 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Closing ceremony of the Invictus Games. Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 16 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Closing ceremony of the Invictus Games. Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 16 Sep 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Closing ceremony of the 2023 Invictus Games at the Merkur Spiel-Arena in Dusseldorf Featuring: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex Where: Dusseldorf, Germany When: 16 Sep 2023 Credit: Dutch Press Photo/Cover Images **NOT AVAILABLE FOR PUBLICATION IN THE NETHERLANDS OR FRANCE**
Something insidious indeed. Apparently Dogshit Charlie has operatives everywhere.
And it sounds like sour grapes, big time.
I definitely agree someone has sour grapes but I think you overestimate KC3’s influence. We’re a tiny island. I don’t think Hollywood gives a rats about our country or would *kowtow* in anyway to C3
But I think the monarchy is useful to powerful news organizations and they’re not happy with Harry suing them. And they have friends and favors they can pull. This reads like a tabloid entry.
Seconding what you and Jais are saying.
This isn’t from the palaces – it’s from the “real monarch” whose boot King Charles licks: Rupert Murdoch.
lol what. King Charles doesn’t have that kind of power to make THR write something bad about H&M. Like, do people not realize that some people just don’t like them? They don’t see much value in what they do? Not everything is a conspiracy.
Thanks for saying that. Rolling my eyes here.
There’s “not liking them” and then there’s regurgitating false tabloid talking points, which is what we’re seeing here. That’s what’s making some of us think something is going on behind the scenes.
So you dislike them because they are trying to do good things? Odd. Most people would be indifferent perhaps, but dislike?
Its not the palace influence its people like Murdoch and Lord Rothermere. The guy who owns this publication is another billionaire white man. Theres alot of money at stake with the two upcoming trials.
I am not a fan of Joe Rogan and yet I manage to not engage with anything related to him. The people who constantly feel the need to criticize them are actually obsessed with them.
Unlike the highly insecure William and Charles, Harry and Meghan do not expect everyone to like them. What they do expect, and rightfully so, is fair and honest coverage, which is quite the opposite here. But Harry and Meghan should find comfort in the old adage that if your enemy has to lie about you to prove their point YOU HAVE WON.
As a fan of Harry and Meghan, I also take comfort in the fact that this privacy lie (and south park) is the best the Firm and it’s media partners can do. Pathetic!
Mmmm, some people dont like them you say “Sammy” (ahem) would you like to explain WHY?, could it be jealousy and sour grapes, because you see everything this rag is complaining about, are all very successful, seems to be a back story of names and influence that are NOT being given.
English people are everywhere and some of them are royalists
Agree @Tina. The billionaire boys club. The 2 lawsuits still going are not frivolous and could expose a lot of wrongdoings by ANL/News Group and their sidepiece the Firm/monarchy. These men lick each other’s balls. https://jacobin.com/2023/10/artforum-editor-david-velasco-jay-penske-media-israel-assault-gaza-letter
“If the culture industry writ large had an award for the person most willing to do the wealthy’s bidding no matter how much it undermines artists, 2023’s prize would go to Jay Penske.”.
Why bring up an interview from March 2021 and a docuseries that aired in December 2022 (due to deep interest it carried into 2023)? The Sussexes haven’t been screeching about privacy-that’s the BM’s doing. I laughed a little at THR’s title/listing for them. If you’re an advocate for something, being private about said advocacy isn’t exactly helpful . Aren’t advocates suppose to be public about their advocacy? Yea, something insidious, wicked is going on.
Sammie, I have no doubt that there are people who don’t like the Sussexes. What the posters are talking about is just another old, white billionaire owners carrying water for other old, white billionaire media owners. I think if you look at how often you see them during any year, you realize that they are very private people and only show up for their charities or when they announce a project. They show up for awards. We will once in a while see them out having fun. I don’t have a problem with that–I think everyone should go out and have fun.
The comments are right on the money. I’ll also be watching the Washington Post carefully, because a NPR article stated the their new CEO is named in Harry’s lawsuit about hacking. The lawsuit evidently states that William Lewis covered up the hacking by deleted texts, etc. That is the world we live in and the media we have to examine.
The Murdoch’s not Charles.
@Equality I didn’t say I didn’t like them, I said others may not. Why do you guys get so angry at a differing opinion though? It’s like you can’t say anything in these comments without people jumping on you and nitpicking.
Like I said, if people don’t see “value” in what they do, it’s not a reason to attack. Just ignore like @Nic19 said.
@Sammie not to quibble, but isn’t it you having such an issue with differing opinions?
And maybe the broader issue is that this “opinion” of THR (a studio PR/owned pub now that Penske owns it and all other industry trades, Rolling Stone, Variety, etc) isn’t based on facts, it spins to get its digs in.
@WiththeAmerican
No, I think when 10 people jump on 1 comment, you’re the ones who have an issue with differing opinions, not @Sammie, no.
The tabloids are using everything they can to smear Harry & anyone around him. Tom Bower is repeatedly accusing Meghan’s mother of being a drug dealer who spent time in prison and abandoned Meghan for years. Allegations of sex crimes are being thrown at Tyler Perry, with no evidence or police reports – just gossip online, because he is close to H&M. The right wing media in the US is now obediently parroting tabloid gossip intended to harm Harry & his family – THR, Page 6, are reliable liars. That idiot Camilla Tominey is still trying to get Harry’s visa paperwork so she can get him deported!
The TRH silliness is not a one off, it’s part of the intentional effort by evil people to destroy Harry by any means necessary
I hate using this term, but… this is FAKE NEWS. This is using ChatGPT to make publicly available information (in this case disinformation) seems like real news and exploit it for clicks.
When you see so many going after a couple that is not out there destroying anyone…smh. These news media could instead of using resources to out people that are legit horrible…. I wonder how many news media, people, organizations, and leaders are going to be responsible for what this country becomes.
Man, THR are really bitter about Harry and Meghan. Did they ask for an interview and got turned down?
this is what I think. They were trying for some exclusive and got turned down.
The whiny, whiny, pouty writer-at-large of THR 12/13/23 hit piece, James Hibberd, appears to have been regurgitated in today’s hit piece by “THR Staff” writers. Can’t find this (or prior) filler articles in the first several pages that come up on THR channel on Apple News recent editions. It’s entirely possible that all writers have been negatively impacted by strikes this year. They could be susceptible to britmedia payola. Sad.
Amy Bee, it’s not just Penske’s THR, it’s also Penske’s Deadline. My guess is that whatever is causing Penske to use multiple outlets to smear the Sussexes, it has to be due to more than just refusing to be interviewed. I really wonder what on earth is going on there!
I also suspect that Harry and Meghan have made a deal with another publication, probably Variety, to make their project announcements.
@AmyBee he owns Variety too now. He bought everything.
@WiththeAmerican: Oh, I didn’t know that. Then it means that THR and its affiliates probably offered an exclusive deal and Harry and Meghan said no thanks.
Penske Media has been gobbling everything up. I don’t know if it has happened yet, but Penske Media has been looking into buying the Los Angeles Times. There’s a reason he’s been called the Rupert Murdoch of entertainment industries.
And, that’s not a good thing.
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/02/penske-vox-media
There is a definite anti Sussex agenda
I reckon it is there simply because it drives up readership
THR is absolutely tragic
This is their 3rd hit piece, ignore it.
THR is an influential publication in the industry and can really damage H+M’s brand.
I doubt it. The article is too shrill and it just echoes the negativity by some media. Bots and derangers. I think that the constant and continued articles like this are really a turn off. And will have the opposite effect. There is much desperation in the article as well
No, it won’t. This is so obviously petty that people in Hollywood will see right through it.
I think people in the industry can see through this pretty easily. It’s obvious and like @tessa said, desperate. Tatler just wrote that Diana invaded her own privacy. So I guess Harry and Meghan are in good company as far as being obvious targets of smearing from people with an agenda.
Really? Producers and influential people make big decisions based off a gossip type mag? Surely someone really successful, like say Tyler Perry, would do better than that. Oh yeah, TP already endorses H&M.
lol. Please be serious. They talked sh*t about Taylor for ages, now she is their prom queen. They really damaged her branding, right?
THR and Deadline Hollywood are Penske publications and they got trashed during the strikes because of their anti union stories while claiming to be neutral.
So this doesn’t have the same effect as it might have a few years ago.
Someone at the Penske office has an issue with them, but WME is not going to let this go unoticed.
THR is *not* influential in my industry. It’s like the tabloid version of the trades. You can buy article space very easily on there.
As @KASalvy said, THR is less journalism and more paid advertorial. To me, these unwarranted, obvious cut-and-paste attack jobs on the Sussexes are clearly part of some new (or renewed) campaign… and then I remembered that Charles and company have their pathetic documentary coming out soon, and so they must have a whole hamfisted press strategy to go with it. Let’s wait and see what THR, Deadline et al have to say about Charles’ little film project and circle back to these digs, because I don’t think they’re exactly as random as they seem.
Please forgive me Megan, but I thought it was the Sussexit that was supposed to have destroyed Harry and Meghan’s brand by now? Or was it the Oprah interview? Oh, no, it was the “Harry & Meghan” documentary. Oh, sorry, my bad, it was that time Harry did an interview with Dak Shephard. Sorry, I’m mistaken, it was Spare, the memoir. Oh, sorry, we’ve moved on from that now, according to you it’s this rag that no one other than a few insiders read.
Please forgive the snark, but I think the royal family’s heavy emphasis on trying to destroy Harry and Meghan’s brand in the US amounts to throwing in the towel. Their desperate attempts to make fetch happen here for William and Kate have failed; so the best they can do is, look over their South Park??? This is what you think is going to destroy Harry and Meghan? We have never seen this ridiculous privacy argument before?
@Megan I agree. It’s a trade publication, not a gossip site. It’s troublesome.
Not only have they not advocated for privacy, we barely see them, Meghan especially. I think I could count on one hand the number of time she’s officially popped out anywhere. We especially never see their children which is great.
I don’t understand what THR’s motivation behind their recent commentary about H&M is.
It’s that south park episode that bots and derangers keep talking about.
I am flummoxed by so many people treating South Park like it’s a reliable source of information. It’s a satirical cartoon!
@TESSA, but isn’t it funny that they never mention the wills and Kate one (which I thought was funnier and more accurate lol
The BM & derangers are obsessed with that episode. It’s so funny. Meghan pretty much hadn’t been seen for two months and Harry gave 4 interviews for Spare in early January when that episode aired in February.
I was 55 years old when the BM were complaining that Meghan didn’t accompany Harry on his interviews. lol Where is she? Why is she hiding? How dare she not show herself in public? February 2022, THAT one exceptionally deranged person, that Harry said wrote a book about him to pay rent and Omid referenced her ‘fictitious ramblings and out-of-pocket conspiracies’, lol, truth, claimed Meghan did not go to the Super Bowl with Harry/Eugenie to draw more attention to herself. A woman stays home to draw attention to herself where cameras are not focused on her. Alrighty then.
exactly! I find this line of reasoning (“they’re invading their own privacy!”) so dim witted. They told their version of a story that the press had already told many times over. That’s not invading your own privacy….it was invaded by the press long before. That’s setting the record straight, which is exactly why the press hates that they did it.
Aside from that, they haven’t trotted their children out for photo ops. They haven’t posed for paparazzi. They haven’t shared any personal details of their lives other than those relevant to the false narrative that the press already put out there.
What gets to me is just how STUPID the claim is. “They’re invading their own privacy!” Why, because they actually responded to your lies? Because they actually dared to defend themselves? That’s what the press is trying to discourage with this moronic line of “reasoning.”
Wtf is the hollywood reporter on?
I think for anyone with the time to check, there is an affliation with the @Mailonline.com. Sour grapes indeed. Their seediness, underhandiness and back door policies will be exposed.
I agree 💯. There will be a lot more of this in the coming months. Harry is taking on two big media organisations next year. They are going to throw everything they can. Desperate measures
Nailed.
This is such a weird spin. I wish I subscribed so I could cancel it!
Right — I already canceled my sub to Air Mail (Graydon Carter’s new pub) over this crap, and I’m eager to keep doing it lol
I was upset at the blurb calling them losers. This just made me laugh because its so obvious THR is just adopting the British tabloids’ talking points and its just going to damage their own reputation. Putting out hit piece after hit piece on Harry and Meghan is not the winning strategy they seem to think it is, not in the US.
I think it is less that THR is doing the bidding of Charles,’ and moreso that it is now owned by Penske media and taking a very right turn. If you peek their coverage over the past 6 months they have been nasty in general or full on dismissive to women, minorities, and the general state of the industry and media in general. It s a legacy paper so it will always have a level prestige to it, but it has taken quite the downward turn in terms of like… reputable reporting. So has deadline (also Penske). Variety is also Penske but is doing better- for now.
Meghan covered Variety in October and showed up here: https://www.celebitchy.com/845726/duchess_meghan_made_a_surprise_appearance_at_varietys_power_of_women_event/
Variety seems to have (had?) a good relationship with Meghan (and Harry?).
In December, sister publications THR and Deadline went after the Sussexes, but even with a right-wing turn in reporting this is shocking.
If I’m not mistaken it was THR that had that terrible piece about Letitia Wright so this tracks.
They did. She said she had declined to be interviewed by them and then that hit piece lumping her with actors accused of being abusive. Scott feinberg wrote that piece and I’ve come to discover on Twitter that he has a long history of misogyny.
They also put BTS on the cover and proceeded to write the most racist, xenophobic, offensive and often factually incorrect article on them ever. It was so bad, their fans ripped them to shreds on social media.
https://www.vulture.com/2019/10/bts-hollywood-reporter-cover-fans-react.html
@BlueSky Scott Feinberg is trash. He has said multiple problematic – and racist – things in the past. He blocked me on Twitter when i called him out on how he talked about a Black actress in one of his tweets.
Wow! How suicidal do you have to be to take on the BTS Army!?!? That was never, ever going to end well! They got exactly what they deserved!! LOL!
This is what happened to Newsweek. Purchased by a company with a rightward slant and coasted on it’s previous history and reputation to appear reputable. Most people have figured out Newsweek of 2023 is not Newsweek of 2003 though and it looks like THR is going the same way. Then you have Deadline hiring a former Daily Mail reporter and this is what you get.
Thank you for that explanation. I noticed that Newsweek had changed.
There is one awful British journalist, Royston who covers royal stories for Newsweek and gets invited regularly by Sky News and appears to enjoy taking pot shots at the Sussexes with the Burley woman edging him on.
How sad that Newsweek has gone right wing
I’ve been trying to understand Jay Penske and Penske Business Media. It’s scary that there is no antitrust legislation because he’s the Murdoch of entertainment media — owns Rolling Stone, Variety, Billboard, and South by Southwest festival (SXSW), Women’s Wear Daily, Deadline Hollywood, The Hollywood Reporter, Boy Genius Report, Robb Report, Artforum, ARTNews, and others. So hope that this isn’t being injected by Jay Penske, but is limited to Scott Feinberg. This is a red flag of some sort though.
Yes, it is obvious something is happening behind the scenes. It was maybe some kind of fight between agents. Wasn’t it reported that a lot of agents were after Meghan and WME won, then the president of rival agency called Meghan talentless even though he was trying to get her as client. Meghan said, she can’t wait to share what she was working on, this may be an attempt to make a hit before her projects getting public. It is certainly weird especially after H&M and their spokesperson made it clear before Netflix doc they never asked for privacy, it was reported as a reason by tabloids basically to silence them.
Nope. THR in recent history has been writing hit pieces targeting people who have turned them down for interviews.
These words sound like they are straight out of the Palace playbook on how to speak about the Sussexes. I wonder how much further THR will go with this angle because there is nothing for them to win.
Spare was the second most frequently borrowed book from the new york public library in 2023 and on the best seller lists for many weeks. I guess these writers who slam harry and Meghan are bitter.
Well, who p*ssed in their cornflakes? Dang. It really just stands out as bizarre. Such an obvious tabloid narrative take. It’s giving vendetta vibes. Thinking there are some people not happy about harry’s court cases and they’re calling in favors. The privacy narrative is stale at this point but it’s been brought up twice now. By Piers Morgan in his hissy fit statement and now by the Hollywood Reporter. Hmmm.
they are almost never outside and never asked for privacy – they asked for fairness from the british press, which of course was never going to happen, but they really need that clip from the oprah show to go viral or something that explains how they never asked for privacy or wanted a private life.
One could argue that given their silence while being smeared by THR and other media hit pieces that they’re extremely private. And they are rarely seen in public. When they do stick their heads above the parapet, it’s big news!
i think you’re right that something is afoot. I’ve also seen a newsweek article where they implied H&M need to make some amends and reach out to friends/family next year to build their brand. i wonder if someone is souring their relationships in hollywood. THR is generally a litmus of overall impressions of someone amongst the entertainment industry.
Not necessarily. The editor of THR is from the Mail, who is also being sued by Harry. And this is the worst that can be said about them? That they are not private enough, when its been almost a year since they’ve given any interviews, unless you count the 30 seconds Meghan spoke to Variety on the red carpet. How many people keep moaning about the Sussexes not having an IG account so “we can know what they are working on”?
Newsweek has always been like that though. Nothing new there. And THR’s not a litmus especially as it’s rep has been declining.
No, it’s not. Look, I worked in the industry for 14 years. On the independent film side. Part of my job was to read the Hollywood Reporter and Variety. Their main purpose is to keep the industry abreast of deals made, projects in production, awards, film and television reviews, etc.
Not this petty clickbait bullshit.
but that’s why i think something happened in the hollywood circles. deadline and THR have both written pieces. sure, they are borderline clickbaity, but these are still somewhat legitimate pubs in the entertainment industry. all i am saying is something is brewing. i think H&M need to up their comms team to do some control bf these continue to spiral.
Trust me, this is nothing. This is an industry where abusers like Chris Brown and Johnny Depp still have thriving careers and sign lucrative deals. An industry rag calling them whiny losers isn’t going to curtail anything. Their reputations speak for themselves and across the board they are both seen as a joy to work with.
@hannah, Newsweek has never been the same respectable publication it once was since it was sold to IBT in 2013. At all. Countless articles about that.
I cancelled my subscription 4-6 months into that sale. Newsweek became very odd reading and it still is.
Penske Media acquiring THR, Deadline, Variety has downgraded those publications. Nothing is brewing within Hollywood circles with the Sussexes outside of nefarious 3rd party sources. Hollywood isn’t Hollywood without their A-list actors. Neither Meghan or Harry are stealing acting jobs from anyone. Though, personally, I wouldn’t mind.
Ari Emanuel and WME need to start hitting back at this and the other industry rag that went after H&M. Their bread and butter is the entertainment industry, let’s see how their publications do when they are denied access to all WME clients.
I’m so fed up w this garbage and would really love to see some savagery on WME’s part. But I am super petty like that.
All WME has to do is get those contract for Meghan and announce them when finalised.
I think there is real panic in certain corners with Harry’s recent win and favours are being called in. So many publications are now owned by right wing billionaires. This is to take down the Sussexes but its also a warning shot to anyone else thinking of doing the same. Harry and Meghan will be fine but most people could not withstand this type of assault.
All of this, well said.
100% this.
I’d agreed with you earlier @Tina and still do.
Way to lower what you try to pass off as a reputable publication into the gutter. Honestly, how sophomoric and moronic. Both items listed here: nonsense about prom kings and queens as well as the Sussex drivel is embarrassing. Someone needs to graduate from high school petty grudges and grow into adulthood. Hope it’s not the beginning of their full-on right-wing roll-out.
Apart from high school mentality, just a few years ago Taylor was the public enemy number 1 to these magazines. They were publishing articles about how Taylor is the worst person in Hollywood. Now, she is their prom queen. They are not serious people, that’s why this industry deserves to die. They still think, they can make or break a person’s career.
And what does Taylor have in common with Harry and Meghan? She challenged the system. When they wouldn’t let her buy her masters, she re-recorded and re-released all of her albums. And those re-releases have been WILDLY successful. So much so that record labels are re-writing their contract for the new artists they are signing to forbid it.
@sevenblue: That’s so true and it’s important to remember that.
Sigh *eye roll* how many times does it need repeating? They NEVER EVER said they wanted privacy.
They have always maintained (even after they left the UK) that they wanted to use their public recognition for advocacy. It’s the royal family who didn’t allow them to be public philanthropists (because H&Ms popularity was a threat to the line of succession, who always need be the most popular).
And yes, they sue media when they do illegal crap (such as phone hocking), and when media make untrue defamatory claims. But that STILL doesn’t mean they whinged about wanting privacy. It never happened.
Meghan especially has never talked about privacy (I love the clip from Oprah where she explains this) but also – everyone has a right to privacy. no one is saying that because Kim Kardashian has been on reality shows for however many years that it means we’re entitled to know how many times a day she uses the toilet or when she gets sick etc.
The idea of “wanting privacy” is really only an issue when it comes to the Sussexes.
What Harry and Meghan objected to was the press intrusion was aided by the Palace and is different for wanting privacy.
Ironic that the reporters writing this drivel for their right wing masters are never likely to be anywhere near as successful and rich as the people they want to put on “loser” lists.
I bet that’s part of the frisson of the job.
Humm, I do wonder about the truth of her relationship with Jessica Mulroney. Her husband is huge in the Canadian entertainment news scene and her father inlaw was one of our former prime Ministers and she is a Brownstein, which is like being a Hilton. So I’m curious if there really was a falling out and now the Mulroney’s are flexing their muscles. Lainey gossip also worked closely with Ben Mulroney and even though she’s wrote pieces critical of the Mulroneys, she’s lately been a little snarky than usual to the Sussexes, particularly Meghan. There was an article that followed mentioning her name with, “that’s the sound of the air going out of the room”, which was unnecessarily mean. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re behind some of this.
They are fine. Jessica’s husband said it wasn’t true that they’d fallen out. Also i don’t think they’re friends with Lainey since she sided against Jessica.
There is certainly no love lost between the Mulroneys and Lainey at this point.
Yeah they only tried to trash Lainey’s career using their position of white establishment power when Lainey dared point out who Jessica would always try to leverage her connection to Meghan in Canadian media circles. And she only raised this once Jessica had been called out for attacking the black Canadian influencer.
Lainey always had disdain for Meghan, she just had to hide it a bit after BLM and the Oprah interview. I guess it’s safe to come out now.
Interesting. Well, curious to see how this plays out. Lainey gossip does have a lot of historical racism towards Black people that she has since apologized and worked to atone for. But, I wonder if, now it’s safe, the true nature is resurfacing
Ben Mulroney is a former PMs son and while he might have some influence in the Canadian entertainment industry, he’s a nothing in the US.
While they would not go after H and M, they did go after Lainey and used Navigator, one of the major crisis management PR / attack companies in Canada. to target her, which includes the old blog posts that were racist and misogynist that are mentioned below. So there is absolutely no love lost between Lainey and those two. And let’s not forget this all happened because Jessica decided to pull her Canadian social weight on a black Canadian influencer and make threats, so when she was called out for it, she was looking to tarnish others. Lainey wrote a story about this incident and how she would make sure that everyone knew Jessica was friends with Meghan, and that was reason enough to dig up old blog posts from Lainey’s site.
Lainey did openly apologize and acknowledge it was not good what she had posted early on and she doesn’t shy away when it is brought up or relevant to other situations, which is far more contrition than Jessica ever did.
I am intentionally not mentioning the name of the toronto influencer because she has recently been receiving additional threats and the police are involved and the chances that a lot of this stems from the trolls who attacked for speaking up on this original incident is quite high.
Lainey has outlined in her newsletter quite accurately how H and M are seen as being “public” even when they don’t leave the house because the British tabloids cover them non stop and that is something they can’t control.
She has just generally not covered the royals very much in the last few years because you can only say the same thing over and over again so many times. But she’s not working with THR to attack them. She has instead pointed out the Penske connection herself.
^^ Oh well, but the influencer’s aunt hosted a daytime show with Ben and Lainey. When all the shizz hit the fan, Ben ended up having to leave the show, which benefited Lainey and the influencer’s aunt. While Jessica was wrong in hiw she reacted, the influencer had also made threats toward Jessica. Even the chutzpah to demand that Jessica make a statement about BLM on her IG (which the influencer did) is more than a little aggressive. 🙄
Overall, the entire incident was more about a Toronto media turf war than anything else. Even the influencer herself acknowledged that Jessica was not racist. Classist and pushy, perhaps, but not racist.
Marcy Ien, who is now an MP, was a journalist on CTV whereas Ben was the etalk host. Lainey worked as a correspondent on etalk and was in the social. In terms of power Lainey was not the one with power. The son of Brian Mulroney was. And he left etalk to host a morning show on CTV, which was a more serious position. He left that not because of anything Lainey did.
Had Jessica not threatened to get the influencer fired from her sponsorships this wouldn’t have been an issue. Jessica crossed the lines here using her rich girl and married to son of former PM social power and it backfired when she was publicly called out with her nonsense.
Oof. Did H&M kick someone’s puppy and kidnap their firstborn at THR? I understand if it was a gossip site or even a publication like People but an industry publication using high school superlatives to criticise people is very immature. There are ways to criticise H&M without literally turning into a high school mean girl about it all.
It seems like someone at THR has a vendetta. The documentary and podcast came out last year.
They have literally never talked about privacy. And yet this narrative is the most insidious of all of them. I even had an old co-worker who was not a royal watcher say. “didn’t they say they wanted privacy?” When I told her they never said that she was surprised. It’s strange how THAT BM narrative has stuck with no evidence to back it up. And I think THIS is why H&M will leave their Sussex Royal website up with their final statement attached. Because it can be used as evidence to shut that down. But yes – THR are acting like petty bishes. And I wonder if they were snubbed for something (an interview probably). But it reflects poorly on them because this truly make me less likely to read them now.
Ameerah, what I find the most interesting is that they are actually quite private. They make public appearances for their projects and awards. Other than that, they are quite private, and people don’t see them unless a photo comes out because one of them are out and about. That, too, doesn’t happen with any frequency. They wanted to protect Archie and now Lily. Because of the security issue, they want to be safe.
I think a lot of this is because H&M are private. The rags and photogs aren’t earning much money when the subjects don’t give you anything. Sour grapes all around.
The dig at Archetypes is probably the weirdest part of that blob because Meghan rarely ever talked about her personal life on Archetypes and despite its success that was one of the main criticisms of it: that she was too guarde during the interviews. (And i also think that H&M’s unwillingness to talk about their personal lives and focus on themselves was part of the reason that deal with Spotify broke down; Spotify had similar issues with the Obamas who wanted to do more podcasts not hosted by themselves)
The fact they reference an interview from 2021 and a podcast that ended in 2022 where Meghan was discussion general topics and barely referenced anything about her life shows they had to stretch to find anything to try to justify this nonsense.
Please, please, please can W. M. E, start counteracting this crap. I’m sick of the attacks going unchecked, especially as it’s bullsht
That’s not WME’s job.
WME is her agent. Not her PR.
Mary Pester, I don’t think it’s needed here. H&M are private people. They keep their life private. They show up for their projects, IG, awards, etc. This is the real problem for the tabloid writers and photos. They’re not making money off of them the way they want to. They keep writing garbage in the hope that it will make them respond. H&M know not to feed the beast.
I think Harry’s win against the Mirror has gotten some people panicked. I think we should all sit back and watch what the panicked people do.
After the first hit piece weeks ago, I reluctantly unfollowed one of my favorite weekly podcasts, TV’s Top Five. Now after this most recent one, I’m glad I did.
I guess some people don’t like the fact the Sussexes were out and about this year, whether at Beyonce, F1, or getting so much press with Invictus. Not to mention Harry having the biggest selling memoir of the year and decisively winning against a tabloid. So now this article is going back to the privacy notion because they think it will make them change their life or something, go back to the UK. Whatever. I guess we know whet way this publication is going in 2024.
Most people outside the Hollywood bubble wouldn’t know about this publication and what they printed. So for whatever insidious reason they did it this site has fallen for it by reporting it. I feel to some degree this site is also perpetuating the misinformation on the Sussexes and it’s about the clicks the number of comments.
I agree with you.
I just roll my eyes at this crap now. Harry and Meghan are living the life of service and family they always wanted and they’re thriving. But some people are never going to be OK with that, and it’s terrible, but I doubt that H&M let it get to them.
Plus, other A-list celebs are going to understand that they deserve safety and never asked for complete privacy, but for BOUNDARIES.
I’ll make a point to avoid The Hollywood Reporter from now on.
By the way there is a really funny one on Facebook, it shows a newsreader sat at his desk talking about the photo shopped Christmas card sent out by Billy and barbie, the news reader points out that “Millions of people have noticed, that in the photo shopped (his words) Christmas card, sent out by the Royals Louis has a Missing finger, but Megan has said, she has one the Royals can have,” and it shows Megan holding up said finger 😂😂🖕
They made the same joke on Saturday Night Live this week.
That’s from SNL, lol. It’s not a real newsreader, its satire/parody.
It’s still funny lol
Thanks Mary , that’s hilarious 👌
Are H&M going to be trash talked about for the rest of their lives?
They voluntarily stepped down from being working Royals, said they want to live private lives.
They are NOT vile criminals, or serial killers, ffs.
Short of moving to an empty, tiny Island can they just be left to live and let live?
Exhausting and endless lies and tabloid garbage.
JaneS, as long as they fight back against the tabloids as Harry has done with the hacking lawsuits, H&M will remain targets. The tabloids want him to drop the lawsuits. That’s not going to happen, so this is what they do. The amusing part of this is that they don’t have anything to go after them, so they keep regurgitating old stuff.
Definitely something odd about these inclusions of the Sussexes. If they aren’t A listers, then why mention them at all? It does seem like someone at THR has it in for them unless this is WME using the old “there’s no such thing as bad publicity”. I can’t see Meghan signing off on such a strategy though.
The fact that this privacy lie has continued to be falsely reported and repeated constantly by the racist Karen and the British establishment. Proved to me that the only thing they have on the Sussex’s that they can use . Meghan and Harry have never said anything about wanting to be private . They are no longer behold to the taxpayer of England yet their every move is watched reporter on the royals who live on tax payer money live in lavish palace disappear for months on secret vacation.
Vanessa, I think the fact that they are private unless they have a public event is the problem.
Look into the author and editor of these THR hitpieces; looks as if they’re paid by British Media to attack The Sussexes, which is unusual for a U.S. media outlet. There is definitely something wrong with British Media to persistently harass them simply because they chose another life path.
I respect Harry for not trotting his kids out for positive publicity whenever the press gets hostile and respecting his children’s privacy. He has always been respectful and diplomatic towards his family despite the obvious mistreatment he has endured his entire life.
I just read that Washington Post (Jeff Bezos) hired one of the cover-up men of hacking scandal as new CEO, who is mentioned in the lawsuits of Harry & Hugh Grant. I guess, H&M will also get hit pieces from WP starting new year.
The media is SET on punishing Harry for winning his lawsuit
They have been punishing Harry for marrying Meghan , leaving the Royal Family and now.for suing them .
Harry has been putting up with this abuse for years .
He knew what he was taking on and what they would throw at him .
He also knows his life is at risk , but he chose to do it .
My heart goes out to the whole family .
THR sees itself as an authority of industry awards. THR is the mag that hyped the Harry & Meghan Netflix documentary during awards season. The couple never did awards promo and never gave THR an exclusive. I think they’re upset that The Sussexes don’t care about Hollywood PR games any more than they cared about bending the knee to the British Press.
The couple share occasional bits from their personal life when they feel like it, do very limited promotions for their projects, then go home and collect their millions. That’s it. Both UK media and American media are angry that they can neither make nor break them.
I wouldn’t even have known about this article until this forum tbh. I agree with above, this isn’t even talked about in the US.
I think this is more of a headline in the UK. I mean they have to put something negative of HM. Because lately on SM, the BRF and the BM has literally been a laughing stock around the world.
Exactly.
I have been thinking about this 2022 profile of Jay Penske’s publishing empire.(See https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/26/style/jay-penske.html?mwgrp=a-mbar&unlocked_article_code=1.Hk0.mpOn.WoWy-SXqfIbx&smid=url-share)
Republican nepo baby, Murdoch wannabee, family of 45 supporters, goal to make a name for himself in Hollywood and Publishing circles. Aggressive about acquisitions. I’d look for sinister moves and alliances (Heritage Found.?) that try to hurt WME and Ari’s power and bottom line. Absolutely requires defense strategy by all M&H teams.
It’s interesting, the Penske Corp bought THR in 2020. The same year ol’ Bob Penske got his Congressional Medal of Honor from tTrump. Clearly they are colluding with British press to muddy our waters with their toxic sludge journalism. Luckily, Americans are well known to be staunch fact checkers and do not fall prey to smear campaigns and made up stories.
Wait…