Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shocked fans earlier this month when they partied at Kris Jenner’s 70th birthday celebration.
The James Bond-themed bash, hosted at Jeff Bezos’ Beverly Hills estate, drew an impressive roster of A-list attendees, including the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
Although the couple appeared to be having a good time, arriving together hand-in-hand, their attendance sparked considerable debate. As former working members of the royal family, their presence at such a high-profile Hollywood gathering was unexpected, particularly given it coincided with Remembrance Weekend, when senior royals were participating in solemn commemorations in the U.K.
While Meghan is understood to have connections with the Kardashian-Jenner clan, one royal commentator has suggested there was an additional reason behind Meghan and Harry’s decision to attend.
According to Tom Sykes, that reason was to demonstrate how they remain influential figures in Hollywood circles.
Writing in his Daily Beast Sunday newsletter, Sykes observed, “For the Sussexes, the symbolism of being at the party was obvious and practical,” reports The Express.
He continued, “Here they were at the epicenter of American celebrity power-Kardashians, Bezos, Zuckerberg, Gates, Oprah, Snoop.
“For Meghan, now professionally entangled with Amazon via her cameo in a new film for the streamer, it was a clean, shiny rebuttal to the claim that Hollywood is “over” them.”
For the party, Meghan wore a $5,000 outfit, which consisted of a long, black gown with a high neckline and dangly gold earrings. Harry wore a smart black suit, adorned with a red poppy to show remembrance of the British lives lost in wars across the world.
Beyond the attention Harry and Meghan’s attendance generated, a subsequent controversy involving photographs of them also dominated the headlines. Meghan, 44, and Harry, 41, were initially seen in party photos posted by Kris Jenner and Kim Kardashian on Instagram.
However, the pictures showcasing the couple were quickly removed from social media. The reason behind this action remains unconfirmed.
Fans were quick to share their thoughts about the now-deleted snaps, with one person writing on TikTok, “Why did Kim have her hands on her stomach the whole night? Did her dress break or something?”
Another slammed the Duchess of Sussex’s outfit, writing, “Meghan was underdressed.”
Over on Reddit, one person posted, “Can understand why Kris would take them down b/c am sure the comments were brutal.”
A second critic said, “If KK took the photo down, it’s because she wanted to imo. She gave Meghan her five minutes and then deleted.”
