Signs Harry Isn't Thrilled With Archie & Lilibet Being Used To Promote Meghan's Brand

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It looks like Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, may not be smiling for the cameras when it comes to Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, using their children to promote her new As Ever lifestyle brand. As Meghan has ramped up the launch of her new company, her son, Prince Archie, 5, and daughter, Princess Lilibet, 3, have made appearances in promotional photos for her new venture, and it appears that Harry may not be fully on board.

On April 4, Matt Wilkinson, the royal editor for The Sun, appeared on "A Right Royal Podcast" and discussed Harry's reported disapproval of any glimpse of Archie and Lilibet at all, saying, "My understanding of this is that, up to a certain stage, Harry would much rather his children were not seen." Given that Harry himself grew up with photographers hounding his mother, Princess Diana, we can certainly see how Meghan's desire to grow a lifestyle brand that includes their children could serve as one of many red flags in their marriage. However, given the bold claims that the royal couple's finances may be in trouble, Harry may have to put up with his wife's creative direction — even if he isn't thrilled.

Much of the conflict between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, appears to stem from how they grew up. With Harry's history of being hounded by the British paparazzi, it makes sense why he would be so protective of his own children. In fact, Us Weekly reported that his and Meghan's decision to move to leave the U.K. and move to the U.S. stemmed from wanting to get their family out of the spotlight, with a source telling the outlet back in 2020, "He wants to shield his son from the negativity and tension he would've been exposed to back in England." However, given As Ever's sloppy and poorly reviewed rollout, the kids might end up being lumped in with some negativity anyway.

But unlike Harry, Meghan appears to have far less fear of the public, with royal editor Matt Wilkinson bringing up the fact that Meghan "grew up in California, she once said she would like to have a more California style lifestyle, take them down the beach, go out, do stuff. She doesn't want to hide them away." The drastically different upbringings and viewpoints on what to do with Archie and Lilibet could make for some difficult decisions when it comes to embracing Meghan's As Ever brand of being a mother and homemaker -– and leave Harry with the difficult decision of managing how much his kids will have to repeat his fate of being in the public eye.

After accusations of copying others with As Ever, when it came time to finally launch Meghan Markle's As Ever website, she put not just herself but her and her daughter Lilibet on it. According to the New York Post, the image showed Meghan and Lilibet running hand and hand through the bright green grass, with both of them wearing light outfits to fit the charming mood. While Lilibet's face is obscured by her head of hair, the mother and daughter image is perfectly deployed to capture the vibe of Meghan's brand. The calculation of Lilbet as a marketing tool for Meghan's extension of motherhood had Matt Wilkinson claim that Harry is "not overly happy" with the use of their children in promotion for the brand. The children have also been glimpsed in videos posted to Meghan's Instagram as they help their mom make cookies in the kitchen, which we assume got the approval of Harry.

Wilkinson went on to unravel the tricky logic that Harry is likely dealing with, saying, "You could argue that Meghan isn't exploiting the children, she's just. ... Well maybe she is exploiting them, but she's using them to display her brand. She's a mother. A homemaker and cooking at home."  Given all of that, at the time of writing, the photograph of Lilibet with her mom does not appear to be on the As Ever website — so maybe Harry has had a word with her.

While it appears that Prince Harry has decided to allow his kids to be photographed after all, it would appear that Meghan Markle is at least adhering to the rule of not showing their faces. The loophole was notably seen when People got a hold of Harry and Meghan's 2024 Christmas card, which surprisingly included Archie and Lilibet, but only as they ran towards their parents without their faces being shown. It appears that Meghan must have gotten Harry to allow the same strategy in a promotional post that she uploaded to Instagram for As Ever. The sunny photo is captioned "every day is a love story" and shows Meghan holding a basket-carrying Lilibet while Archie wraps his arms around her leg -– with the mother and kids looking away from camera.

Duncan Larcombe, the author of "Prince Harry: The Inside Story," spoke to Ok! U.K. and explained: "Meghan is building a brand, and that is somewhat at odds with a life out of the limelight, so this is where alarm bells might start to ring down the line for Harry. She's sharing their children tentatively, but it's a very big deal because it's a tap they won't get to turn off." Given that Meghan's brand is only just beginning, and there will only ever be the need for more photographs as it grows, we can see Harry being most uneasy with the idea that Archie and Lilibet may be a part of the As Ever identity for the rest of their lives.