Clooney: ‘Meghan vilified like Diana’
History being repeated in Meghan stories, says star
ROYALS: Hollywood actor George Clooney has warned that the Duchess of Sussex is being “pursued and vilified” and compared her treatment with the harassment which Diana, Princess of Wales endured.
ACTOR GEORGE Clooney has warned that the Duchess of Sussex is being “pursued and vilified” and compared her treatment with the harassment which Diana, Princess of Wales endured.
The Hollywood star is a friend of Harry and Meghan and he and his human rights lawyer wife Amal attended the Royal Wedding in May last year, inset.
Clooney, 57, warned that history was repeating itself in the case of Meghan and Diana, warning “we’ve seen how that ends”.
His intervention comes amid reports of a rift between Meghan, who is pregnant, and her father, Thomas Markle. Over the weekend, a newspaper published a deeply personal letter allegedly written by the Duchess to her father in August, months after he missed her wedding.
After joking about a report suggesting he would be named godfather to Harry and Meghan’s baby, Clooney, who was speaking at an event in Los Angeles, said: “I do want to say, I just saw this piece. They’re just chasing Meghan Markle everywhere, she’s been pursued and vilified.
“She’s a woman who is seven months pregnant and she is being pursued and vilified and chased in the same way that Diana was, and it’s history repeating itself. And we’ve seen how that ends. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to see that.
“You’re taking a letter from a daughter to a father and broadcasting it everywhere. She’s getting a raw deal there, it’s irresponsible. I’m sort of surprised by that.”
Clooney and his wife have 18-month-old twins, a daughter, Ella, and a son, Alexander. Former Suits actress Meghan, 37, is estranged from her father after a string of high-profile incidents since she became engaged to Harry. Days before his daughter was due to marry, Mr Markle allegedly staged paparazzi photos of himself.
He has previously said his relationship with his daughter has broken down and has made public appeals for her to get in touch with him.
Mr Markle, speaking to the Mail On Sunday this week, dismissed claims he has not attempted to contact his daughter.
A friend of Los Angeles-born Meghan told US magazine People: “He’s never called – he’s never texted. It’s super painful.”
Five unnamed friends of the Duchess spoke to the magazine in an effort to counter the “global bullying” directed at her.
Meanwhile, Meghan joined her husband, the Duke of Sussex, for a gala performance of The Wider Earth, which documents 22-yearold Charles Darwin’s expedition around the world on HMS Beagle, at the Natural History Museum yesterday evening.
She revealed in January that their baby is due to be born at the end of April or beginning of May.