Before her marriage to Prince Harry thrust her into the global spotlight, Meghan Markle made her mark on the hit show "Suits." Yet, the show's creator, Aaron Korsh, has revealed a peculiar restriction placed by the royal family—a phrase they didn't want Meghan's character to utter.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published on Tuesday, Aaron Korsh disclosed that he was dissuaded from having Meghan's character, Rachel Zane, use the term "poppycock." The Duchess of Sussex, at 42, portrayed Rachel Zane on the legal drama from 2011 to 2018, spanning the show's original run on the USA Network.
The announcement of Meghan and Prince Harry's engagement in November 2017 was swiftly followed by the cable channel's announcement that the seventh season would be her swan song. While "Suits" officially concluded after its ninth season in 2019, it has experienced a resurgence this summer, shattering streaming records since its arrival on Netflix in June.
According to Korsh, the word "poppycock," a playful term for nonsense, holds a special meaning within his family and he had intended to include it in a scene between Meghan's character and her co-star Patrick J. Adams, who portrayed Mike Ross.
"In an episode, Mike and Rachel were meant to share a moment, and as a tribute to my in-laws, we were planning to have her say, 'My family would call it poppycock.' However, the royal family expressed their reservation about having her utter that word. They were concerned about the word 'poppycock' being associated with her," Korsh disclosed to The Hollywood Reporter. "Presumably, they wanted to avoid the possibility of that word being manipulated in a way that could be misinterpreted. As a result, we had to revise the script… and I wasn't thrilled about it because I had promised my in-laws that [poppycock] would make it into the show."
The 56-year-old producer went on to explain that he wasn't sure how the palace had gained access to the scripts.
"I was aware that they were reviewing the scripts because I received feedback, but I can't recall how they acquired them," he shared, clarifying that the decision wasn't influenced by the future Duchess herself.
"No, Meghan didn't reach out to me. Honestly, I can't quite remember. It might have been the supervising producer at the time or her agent. Whoever it was, they weren't keen on having this conversation any more than I was. Nevertheless, when they explained their concerns in that manner, and I'm relatively certain it was about that potential for distortion, I found myself sympathetic. After all, I wouldn't want anyone to exploit that in her regard. Besides, I never believed anyone would actually do it, but then again, people can be quite unpredictable."
Aaron Korsh was present at Meghan and Harry's momentous royal wedding at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in May 2018, along with fellow cast members Sarah Rafferty, Rick Hoffman, Gabriel Macht, Gina Torres, Abigail Spencer, Jacinda Barrett, and Patrick J. Adams—who, as Meghan's on-screen spouse, shared a fictional wedding during the seventh season finale of "Suits."
In a joint interview marking their engagement in November 2017, Meghan confirmed that she would no longer pursue acting.
"I don't view it as a sacrifice. To me, it's a transition," she remarked in a BBC News special. "It marks the beginning of a new chapter, right? Also, let's not forget, I dedicated seven years to 'Suits.' The fact that we were blessed with such longevity on a television series is quite remarkable. I've checked off that box, and I take immense pride in the work I accomplished there. Now, it's time for me to collaborate with [Harry] as a team."
According to Variety, viewers consumed a staggering 20.31 billion minutes of "Suits" between June 19 and July 30, spread across Netflix and Peacock platforms, according to Nielsen data. This surge solidified "Suits" as Nielsen's second-most streamed series for six consecutive weeks, trailing only the debut of the fourth season of "Stranger Things" last summer.
