While Meghan Markle grappled with drama involving her real-life father, the former Suits actress shared a lovely bond with her on-screen dad Wendell Pierce especially as her final scenes in the smash USA Network legal drama came to a close.
In a new interview with The Telegraph, Pierce recalled the day he filmed scenes with Markle for Rachel Zane’s wedding to Mike Ross (played by Patrick J. Adams). It was shot before she even got engaged to Prince Harry in November 2017, yet Pierce’s fatherly intuition kicked in and he felt compelled to extend advice to the future Duchess of Sussex.
“From the increased security I saw around her, I figured something might happen,” he told the UK paper of that moment in April 2017.
“We had a moment I cherish,” he continued. “I was sitting with Meghan in her wedding dress, as we waited for a set-up. We were alone. I said to her, ‘Your life is going to change. It’s going to be amazing but I want you to know that I’m your friend, and no matter where you are or what’s going on—if the fishbowl that you’re in ever starts getting to you—you can call me.’”
(Credit: USA Network)
Months later, Harry proposed to the actress in the comfort of Nottingham Cottage in Kensington Palace. A year after Pierce’s chat with Markle, she married Prince Harry at Windsor Castle. However, leading up to the big day and since then, there has been an overwhelming amount of conflict with her father, Thomas Markle.
The bride hasn’t forgotten her Suits co-stars, however. The main cast members were all invited to attend the nuptials in England. Sarah Rafferty, who was Markle’s on-screen best friend on Suits, opened up about the friendship in an interview leading up to the royal wedding in May.
Gina Torres as Jessica Pearson, Patrick J. Adams as Michael Ross, Sarah Rafferty as Donna Paulsen, Meghan Markle as Rachel Zane, Rick Hoffman as Louis Litt, Gabriel Macht as Harvey Specter — (Photo by: Nigel Parry/USA Network/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
“We worked together for so many years on the show,” Rafferty commented on the Today show. “It’s such an amazing experience. We were with each other for longer than we went to college or high school with our friends. We became family, in a way; we’re still family. So, this is a wonderful family affair.”
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