Meghan Markle’s royal wedding day is less than a month away and her life is about to change dramatically.
The 36-year-old former Suits star is quickly becoming one of the most famous women on the planet, set to enter a world of appearances with global leaders and fellow celebrities alike. Along the way, her journey has taken some twists and turns, leading to some fascinating encounters with other well-known individuals.
From her first credited role as the very busy nurse “Jill” on General Hospital, all the way through to her final appearance on Suits this season, Markle has made some surprising connections with celebrities both on and off the set. Most occurred while she played increasingly larger parts in TV and film, ranging from small and/or unnamed roles like “nurse” and “hot girl” to FBI agent, victim, villain and, of course, star on the USA Network series she recently left as she prepares for the royal wedding.
Here are just a few of Markle’s surprising interactions as well as some of the connections she’s made over the years, both in front and away from the cameras.
1. Jason Sudeikis
From “just a FedEx girl” to royalty? Who’d have guessed?
Actually, Jason Sudeikis did on the set of Horrible Bosses. Her screen time as “Jamie” the FedEx delivery person only amounted to about 30 seconds or so in the hilarious 2011 comedy, but Sudeikis still had kind words to say about her recently.
“I saw it coming a mile away, I gotta be honest with you,” Sudeikis recently shared with ET. “She was regal in that moment, and it seems like she’s only gotten better at it.”
He added, “It was great. She was very sweet.”
2. Busy Philipps
Busy Philipps demands to know where her invitation to the royal wedding is, based on their extremely close, personal connection. Just kidding.
But Markle did play a flirtatious subway cashier in one scene on Philipps’ short-lived UPN sitcom, Love, Inc.
“She did one episode, she had, like, three lines. She was lovely,” Philipps told ET, before playfully adding, “Where’s my f**king invitation?!”
So maybe Philipps wasn’t completely kidding after all.
3. Paula Patton
How about this for a random connection? While the royal wedding invitations have already been sent out, in 2005, it was Markle who was writing out invitations — for Paula Patton’s wedding.
Patton told ET that as she prepared to marry now ex-husband Robin Thicke, Markle, who was working as a clerk at a store called Paper Source, wrote out the addresses for her wedding invitations by hand.
“She had this beautiful writing,” Patton recalled. “That moment I feel like I said something to her, like, ‘You are meant to be royal’… She was just so graceful and lovely, and actually really kind.”
4. Howie Mandel
Trae Patton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
From 2006 to 2007, Markle was a briefcase model on Deal or No Deal, hosted by Howie Mandel. The show, which is heavy on tension and luck, has contestants pick from 25 briefcases to try and eliminate all but the one that holds the million-dollar grand prize.The Game Show Network recently compiled some clips of Markle on the show, highlighting some of her best moments.
5. Chrissy Teigen
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for DirecTV
Oh yeah, and up there with also holding briefcases during Markle’s 2007 run? None other than model Chrissy Teigen. She touched on it recently with Ellen DeGeneres, joking, “I tell John [Legend] all the time, that could be me. I could be Princess Harry.”
6. Adam Rodriguez (and David Caruso)
In 2010, Markle got in on a bit of the action on CSI: Miami, where she played Miami-Dade police officer Leah Montoya. In one episode, she insists upon plunging into a burning house to help rescue anyone trapped inside. But when the floor collapses under her, it’s she who needs rescuing — from series star David Caruso.
But co-star Adam Rodriguez recently told ET that he didn’t realize he had actually acted with the future royal in the episode.
“There’s no chance I would’ve missed her, right? I was in the scene with her,” he wondered, before noting: “But I don’t think that I looked at anybody that’s coming down like, ‘Do you know you’re gonna marry someone that’s called the prince one day?'”
7. Ashton Kutcher
Markle shared the screen with Ashton Kutcher in the 2005 romantic comedy A Lot Like Love. While she’s credited as “hot girl,” Markle plays “Natalie” in a brief scene on an airplane, where she flirts with fellow passenger Kutcher.
8. Joshua Jackson
Fox
It was back to the action for Markle, playing the very inquisitive (and no-nonsense) FBI Agent Jessup in 2009 on the mid-bending Fox sci-fi series Fringe. Her attempts to control the crime scene and question series star Joshua Jackson are quickly ended as co-star Anna Torv flies through the windshield of a wrecked SUV that had just moments before been completely empty.
Spooky.
9. Mark Duplass
On the FX series The League, Markle appeared as a divorced woman (don’t call her “divorcee”) who is approached by series star Mark Duplass, who offers to buy her a drink as they share in their mutual hatred of magic.
10. Michael Rapaport
Markle, playing Susan, became the object of on-screen co-worker Michael Rapaport’s fantasies in 2006 on the FOX series The War at Home. The fantasy, alas, didn’t turn into reality, when instead she tried to hook his character up with her mom.
For everything you need to know about the upcoming royal wedding, watch the video below.
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