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Meghan Markle says she was rejected for skincare ads because of her freckles

Meghan Markle said she also faced racial typecasting as a mixed-race woman in Hollywood

By TCP News Desk April 30, 2025

Meghan Markle is now one of the most recognizable faces in the world but she’s opening up about the rejections and insecurities she faced long before royal life.

On the latest episode of her Confessions of a Female Founder podcast, released April 29, the Duchess of Sussex got candid with guest Jamie Kern Lima, founder of IT Cosmetics, about the beauty standards that once held her back.

“I remember I couldn’t even be submitted for beauty or skincare ads because I had freckles,” Meghan recalled. “They’re like, ‘No, no, no. It’s just never gonna work because freckles aren’t a sign of beauty.’”

The 43-year-old said this early industry rejection wasn’t just about her skin. She also faced racial typecasting as a mixed-race woman in Hollywood.

“I heard no all the time, especially because I wasn’t cookie-cutter for a specific type,” Meghan said. “You were either the Black girl or the White girl or the Latina girl, everything was so typecast.”

“I could get into a lot of rooms,” she explained, “but that meant I heard ‘no’ even more.”

Before landing her breakout role as Rachel Zane on Suits, Meghan had a string of small roles in TV shows and films and plenty of closed doors.

For this emotional, unfiltered podcast episode, her first-ever guest appearance outside of her own shows, Meghan opted to go completely makeup-free. So did her friend and host, Kern Lima.

“Usually when we’re together, we’re in our cozy sweats and no makeup,” said Kern Lima. “So that’s how we are today, too — sitting right here in our cozies with no makeup.”