The chatter that Meghan Markle was in talks with Dior to be their next face/ambassador turned out, unsurprisingly, to be just that: a rumour, and an absurd one too

There is no fake news that is faker. It was first reported last weekend by the Daily Mail* that Meghan Markle was “on the brink of signing a major deal” with the LVMH brand, Dior, to be “a face of the company”. That would have been totally laughable if not for the seriousness of the report. It even quoted a “prominent Beverly Hills socialite”, who hilariously claimed that “Meghan is all anyone is talking about”. We took note, of course, that this individual was not just a socialite, but one who is a leading figure in Beverly Hills, and is keen on promoting the Montecito darling. It is possible that only this person was doing all the talking. The always amusing Daily Mail further expanded on what was said: “There have been rumours for weeks that she’s about to sign a deal with Dior which has put the gossip mill into overdrive.” As we understand, hearsay that goes on for weeks hardly ever stretches to the truth.

Unless the verity of the situation is from the implicated brand itself. Two days after the Daily Mail report, WWD ran an editorial that said a “spokesperson for Dior” told the news site that “the reports are unfounded” and “there have been no contract negotiations or recent contact with Markle.” Even the Daily Mail had to file another story and state, emphatically, that “Meghan is NOT in talks to become the ‘Duchess of Dior’.” It even had to affirm that “sources close to the Royals said no contract had been inked”. How many people doubted that? The question that does not require an answer, but could be asked in relation to Ms Markle’s wildest dream is—does Dior not have enough stars (apart from the paid ones) wearing their dresses willingly, including one prominent Academy Award winner from Ipoh, that they need to come to a financial arrangement with an ex-podcaster to acquire more publicity for the brand?

Does Dior not have enough stars wearing their dresses willingly that they need to come to a financial arrangement with an ex-podcaster to acquire more publicity for the brand?

By now we know that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have lost the Spotify contract—that is fact. And, that would set them back US$20 million—that is hearsay (it is not known exactly how much the deal is worth). People are also saying the Netflix deal will be next. In any case, it is likely the Sussexes are multi-million-US-dollars poorer after their podcast Archetypes was axed. Ms Markle needs to be sure that, even with shortage of cash, her wardrobe(s) is still adequately filled with fashion that could score columns in, no doubt, Daily Mail. Or People. It is no secret that she adores Dior. She has worn the brand quite a few times, publicly. It is possible that if she strikes a deal with Dior, her wardrobe would be taken care of, at least for the duration of her appointment. Recently, she signed with the talent agency William Morris Endeavor for them to “rebrand” her, as is the common understanding. Could she have suggested to them that her wardrobe woes would be alleviated if Dior could come to a paid arrangement with her? And somehow that marvellously got out as “on the brink of signing a major deal”?

Going by how things have turned out for her (and her husband), Ms Markle, even if an Archetype, would be better advised not to align herself with any brand, luxury or not, for the moment, especially after Spotify executive Bill Simmons gleefully called the the Sussexes “fucking grifters” and after others claimed that Ms Markle left work she was supposed to personally perform to others. Sure, that she was (curiously) one of the honorees of the 2023 Women of Vision Awards (that preceded the infamous “near-catastrophic” car chase in Manhattan) would be appealing to other women of vision (i.e. feminists), such as Dior’s Maria Grazia Chiuri, is not astonishing. But, as the Sussexes’ ‘The Worldwide Privacy Tour’ (thanks, South Park) came to an end, their appeal, too, has waned, even tanked. Sometimes, when the embellishments on a dress unravels, repairs do little to restore the apparel’s initial dazzle, even if the dress is from Dior.

*The publisher of the Daily Mail is in a high-profile court case in the UK, where Prince is suing Associated Newspapers for allegedly allowing their reporters to hack his phone in pursuit of unflattering stories on him

Illustration: Just So