‘Striking similarities’: Meghan Markle dragged into fresh copycat row over Netflix series Pearl
Meghan Markle is embroiled in a new copyright drama after a British author claimed her work was ripped off.
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Meghan Markle has been dragged into a fresh copyright row over alleged similarities between her animated Netflix children’s series, Pearl, and the work of a British author.
Children’s writer Mel Elliott has revealed that she sent a legal letter suggesting a potential infringement of copyright in relation to her own creation, a character called Pearl Power.
The writer and illustrator said the alleged “striking similarities” between her work and Meghan’s series, which was cancelled in 2022, were “too great” for her to ignore, the Daily Mail reports.
“Meghan is a feminist who sticks up for other women, so I was disappointed and confused to see how similar Netflix’s proposed show Pearl was to my own Pearl Power who had been created seven years earlier,” Ms Elliot told the Daily Mail.
“The world of arts and media are very competitive and I’m afraid it’s quite common for powerful to people to rip off the work of less well-known creatives — although I’m not saying that’s what happened here.
“What saddened me most is that, having brought the similarities between my Pearl and Meghan’s Pearl to the attention of Netflix and Archewell, my objection was never acknowledged — neither Netflix nor Archewell responded to me when I would have loved to have contributed and collaborated.”
Pearl was a key title in the Sussexes’ much-hyped deal, which they struck with the streaming giant in 2020.
Ms Elliot claimed her lawyers sent a letter to the Duchess of Sussex in 2021, which the writer followed up with personal letters in 2022. However, she has not yet received a response.
In 2022, Meghan quietly deleted all references to Pearl on the Archewell website after the animated series fell victim to Netflix cutbacks.
MEGHAN BLAMED FOR HARRY LEAVING CHARITY
Prince Harry allegedly stepped back from his Sentebale charity after marrying Meghan Markle.
His co-founder Prince Seeiso’s brother blasted the Duke of Sussex for not visiting Lesotho “more often” in recent years.
“When [Sentebale] was launched, I remember his words quite vividly, because he was very strong in saying ‘my mother, [Princess Diana], this place, her passion about Africa’ and all that,” Principal Chief Khoabane Theko told The Telegraph.
“He’s a loved figure because of his openness, but his loss of interest has totally killed the spirit of the Sentebale’s survival,” he continued.
Theko claimed, “I haven’t seen [Harry] since he got himself married.”
Prince Harry, notably, made four visits to Lesotho between June 2010 and late 2015 — and his most recent visit in October 2024 marked his first in six years.
Theko noted that he was “perturbed” to see Prince Harry, 40, and his wife Meghan Markle, 43, visit Africa after they got together in 2016 without stopping in Lesotho.
The Duke of Sussex and former military pilot, who co-created the charity in 2006 to honour his late mother, married the Suits actress in 2018 and welcomed two children — son Archie, 5, and daughter Lilibet, 3.
Prince Harry and Seeiso made headlines for abruptly quitting the charity in March, issuing a joint statement about their decision.
“What’s transpired is unthinkable,” the “heartbroken” duo wrote last month. “We are in shock that we have to do this.”
They blamed their choice on “the relationship between the charity’s trustees and the chair of the board, [Dr. Sophie Chandauka, breaking] down beyond repair.
Ms Chandauka, for her part, claimed in a London Times interview that the rift was due to “misogynoir.”
The US Sun reported earlier this month that Meghan Markle “never liked” the chairwoman, with Ms Chandauka allegedly finding her “rude” at a 2024 polo match.
“[Chandauka] wanted to take her around, to introduce her to other people, but Meghan didn’t want to mingle or engage with those supporting the event,” a source claimed to the outlet.
- The article first appeared in Page Six of the New York Post.
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