Why Don't We See Much Of Prince Archie & Princess Lilibet?
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, aren't as visible as their cousins across the pond. But it's not just because Prince William and Kate Middleton's kids outrank them as far as royal succession goes. Archie and Lilibet's decreased presence seems to be tied to their parents' desire for privacy, which started in 2020 after they stepped down from their roles as senior royals. As Harry and Meghan revealed in their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, they encountered several years of racially charged hostility from the media. As noted by Deadline, Harry even accused a member of his family of inquiring about Prince Archie's skin tone ahead of his birth by saying, "how dark his [her first child Archie] skin might be when he's born."
The Sussexes have since have sought to live life on their own terms stateside. They've also carved out multiple income streams, including Meghan's "Archetype" podcast, Harry's "Spare" memoir, and their $100 million deal with Netflix, which has set them up to produce both scripted and unscripted content, including Meghan's new lifestyle doc centered on cooking and gardening. And though the parents have shared a few select photos of Archie and Lilibet over the years, you shouldn't expect to see them included. Prince Harry is adamant about keeping them offscreen, although Meghan is surprisingly open to the idea. However, Markle also shares concerns about their kids' visibility.
Meghan and Harry want to keep their kids off social media
Although it may seem like a lifetime ago, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry used to be super active on social media. Before departing their positions as senior royals in 2020, their Sussex Royal Instagram account, which gave fans an intimate look into their lives as working royals, had climbed to over 9 million followers. But they left it by the wayside when they transitioned into their new life. Meghan, however, recently returned to Instagram when she announced her new lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard. Its accompanying Instagram account has over 600,000 followers. And yet, the parents don't seem to have plans to give Archie and Lilibet access to social media any time soon.
In October, the couple headlined a mental health summit for their Archewell Foundation and spoke with parents about the dangers of allowing kids on social media without supervision or before they're old enough to develop healthy habits, according to People. They also expressed hesitancy about allowing their children to create their own social media accounts in the future. "Being a mom is the most important thing in my entire life — outside, of course, being a wife to this one," said Meghan during the event. "But I will say I feel fortunate that our children are at an age, again quite young, so this isn't in our immediate future, but I also feel frightened at how it's continuing to change and this will be in front of us."
Meghan Markle knows how negative social media can be
Given the mountain of hate Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have received over the years, especially from the British tabloids, no one could blame them for wanting to shield their children from similar treatment. Especially Meghan, who even dealt with trolls during her pregnancy. "The bulk of the bullying and abuse that I was experiencing in social media and online was when I was pregnant with Archie and with Lili and with a newborn with each of them," Meghan shared during the 2024 SXSW panel (via E! News). "And just you think about that and to really wrap your head around why people would be so hateful."
In 2020, Meghan appeared at Fortune's Most Powerful Women Next Gen Summit and spoke about how becoming a parent had increased her concerns about the rampant use of hate speech online. "It makes you so concerned for the world they're going to inherit," she said, according to the New York Times. "And so the things that you're able to tolerate on your own are not the same, for you go every single day, 'How can I make this better for him, how can I make this world better for Archie?'"