How Meghan Markle Used To Make Ends Meet Between Acting Jobs

Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, has made headlines more and more often since she began dating Prince Harry, whom she went on to marry in May 2018. The couple sparked a great amount of media attention when they announced in early 2020, via Instagram, that they'd decided "to step back as 'senior' members of the Royal Family and [would] work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen." Following this move, Meghan and Harry signed a major deal with Netflix to create a variety of content, including movies, documentaries, and other series, per Us Weekly. An insider revealed to the magazine that about $100 million was offered to the couple for the Netflix partnership. 

This deal is not entering unfamiliar territory for the former actress, who's best known for playing Rachel Zane on the TV series "Suits" before her marriage to Harry, per IMDb. Although she eventually made her way to the top as an actress, like many others just starting out in their careers, Meghan once had to take on other part-time jobs to make ends meet. So, how exactly did she do it? Let's find out.

Before she reached international fame, the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, was once a struggling actress who had to find odd jobs to make a living. She took on numerous roles outside of acting during this time, including working as a freelance calligrapher, teaching calligraphy classes, and modeling on a popular game show, as noted in the biography, "Meghan: A Hollywood Princess" (via Insider).

Markle's calligraphy work was no shabby side job, however. She did calligraphy for high-profile gigs, including writing Dolce & Gabanna's letters to celebrities, as well as the wedding invitations for Robin Thicke and Paula Patton's wedding. She was so talented at calligraphy, in fact, that she was also able to earn money providing lessons to others on the art form part-time while auditioning for roles. Additionally, in 2006, Markle appeared as a briefcase model on "Deal or No Deal," the game show hosted by Howie Mandel, which she later told Esquire was not her favorite gig. Of her time on the show, she said, "I would end up standing up there forever in these terribly uncomfortable and inexpensive five-inch heels just waiting for someone to pick my number so I could go and sit down." Thankfully, once Markle eventually moved on to better roles in acting, she was able to drop these side jobs.

After working hard to make a name for herself in Hollywood, Meghan Markle eventually landed a major role as Rachel Zane in the series "Suits," in which she starred from 2011 to 2018, per IMDb.

Although acting was a huge passion of Meghan's, in 2017, she decided to leave "Suits" after seven seasons, People reported. The magazine detailed that, although the actress expressed her gratitude for having the opportunity to be on the show, she was ready to move on to focus on her life with Prince Harry following their engagement. "It's a new chapter ... keep in mind, I've been working on ['Suits'] for seven years," Meghan said. "I've ticked this box, and I feel very proud of the work I've done there, and now it's time to work with [Harry] as a team."

So far, Meghan and Harry do seem to make a wonderful team, as they've navigated their prosperous recent Netflix deal while raising their two children together, Archie and Lilibet.