Copyright The Mercury News
Is it possible that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle regret attending the star-studded, over-the-top 70th birthday party for reality TV star Kris Jenner? Or could they at least be having second thoughts about the public knowing they were there? How else to explain this report from Page Six, which said that Jenner and her daughter, Kim Kardashian, quietly deleted photos of the California-based Duke and Duchess of Sussex that they shared on social media. The photos showed Harry and Meghan with their arms around Jenner and a photo of a smiling Meghan posing with Kardashian, who was wearing a backless purple gown with a skin-baring crop tap. This Page Six report comes after the outlet also said that British royal insiders were “appalled” to see images of Harry and Meghan mingling with the notorious Kardashian family. Harry and Meghan also were said to be the honored guests of hosts Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his wife Lauren Sanchez. Both Bezos and his attention-seeking wife have arguably become one of the most polarizing couples in the world, as critics say they flaunt their wealth like “oligarchs,” as they try to curry favor with Donald Trump’s controversial administration. “It’s so tacky,” one palace insider, who works with the royal family, said about Harry and Meghan attending the James Bond-themed birthday party. Unfortunately for Harry and Meghan’s possible attempts to downplay their presence, it wasn’t enough for Jenner and Kardashian to delete their Insagram photos of them. Page Six and other outlets already downloaded them, and paparazzi captured the couple arriving at Bezos and Sanchez’s $165 million Beverly Hills mansion. Page Six said that reps for Harry and Meghan and for the Kardashians did not respond to a request for comment about the photos being deleted. The royal insider said Harry and Meghan’s appearance at the party shows why it’s not likely that they would ever be admitted back into the royal fold. Reports have said that Meghan, a Los Angeles-born former TV actor-turned lifestyle influencer, has no desire to return to that life. But Harry reportedly has been eager to reconcile with his family, especially as his father, King Charles III, is ailing from cancer. It’s also been reported that Harry misses his royal career, where he can turn up at charity events to make speeches and attach his name to causes he cares about. But the “ostentatiousness” on display at Jenner’s party is apparently at odds with that royal life. “It truly shows that Harry is so far removed from the rest of the family,” the insider told Page Six. “These people may be stars in America, but the pure ostentatiousness is at odds with what Prince William is trying to do with his life and the monarchy.” Bezos, Sanchez and the Kardashians, of course, are fabulously rich and famous but they also are widely considered to be showy and vulgar — in contrast with the restraint and “quiet wealth” that this insider thinks Harry’s brother tries to present as the future king. Of course, William, too, is fabulously rich and has several posh homes. When Harry and Meghan fled royal life in 2020 to find their “freedom” in America, they tried to build a brand based on their avowed aspirations to be global philanthropists and thought leaders who care about the less fortunate in the world. When they signed their reported five-year $100 million deal with Netflix, they spoke about wanting to create programming that shines “a light on people and causes around the world” and which “informs but also gives hope.” But it wasn’t lost to some on social media that Bezos and Sanchez were hosting Jenner’s party at a time when millions of low-income families in America were facing hunger and financial hardship amid delays to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments. As one person said on a People magazine report about the party: “The world is falling apart and this shows you how the stars care. (Jenner) could have celebrated by giving the money this cost to a good cause. It’s all good to celebrate one’s birthday with friends and family but this as usual is so Kardashian ridiculous. Harry talks out both sides of his mouth about helping the poor and sick as he steps out to something like this.” Harry and Meghan’s appearance at the party also prompted one of their critics on social media to say they were setting themselves up to appear on a future episode of “The Kardashians.” Meanwhile, other party guests included Kylie Jenner (without her boyfriend Timothee Chalamet), Kendall Jenner, Oprah Winfrey, Gayle King, Tyler Perry, Martha Stewart, Adele and three other controversial billionaires: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, his wife Priscilla Chan and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. That Harry and Meghan would want to socialize with Zuckerberg seems to be at odds with the high-minded stance they tried to take nearly a year ago in January, Page Six also reported. That’s when they slammed him for “contributing to a global mental health crisis” after Meta scrapped fact-checking and restrictions on free speech. A week after the billionaire announced these content policy changes, the Sussexes released a statement on their Archewell Foundation website — saying the move would allow “more abuse” and normalize “hate speech,” Page Six reported. But if Harry and Meghan were willing to criticize Zuckerberg, they may feel a need to curry favor with Bezos, especially after Netflix chose to not renew their multimillion-dollar production deal. Bezos’s Amazon MGM studios is currently producing the upcoming romantic comedy, “Close Personal Friends,” in which Meghan will play herself in a cameo, Page Six reported.
