Since Meghan Markle married Prince Harry back in 2018, she’s been under a relentless microscope, especially online. The criticism only ramped up after the couple stepped back from their royal roles and moved first to Canada and then to the US, where they now live with their two kids, Archie and Lilibet. But what started as general trolling has taken on a bizarre life of its own.
One of the more outrageous claims that’s made the rounds again recently is that Meghan was never actually pregnant. Yes, really. Some corners of the internet are still trying to convince people that she used a surrogate to have both of her children, despite zero evidence and repeated debunkings from fact-checkers.
The conspiracy theories got new life after Meghan posted a lighthearted video from a maternity ward showing her dancing with Harry while visibly pregnant. Instead of silencing the noise, it just added fuel to the conspiracy fire, with people twisting what they saw into supposed proof of a cover-up.
But here’s what’s actually true. Official birth records from both the UK and the US clearly list Meghan as the biological mother of Archie, born in May 2019, and Lilibet, born in June 2021. There’s nothing in those records to suggest the use of a surrogate. These rumors aren’t new, and they’ve been part of a bigger wave of attacks targeting Meghan ever since she entered the royal spotlight.
Back in 2019, during her first pregnancy, the conspiracies really took hold. When Harry and Meghan made a few personal choices—like waiting to share details publicly or making small updates to birth certificates—online trolls latched onto them as proof that something was off. It wasn’t. One viral screenshot used to “prove” a surrogacy was later completely debunked by Snopes.
Meghan’s estranged family hasn’t helped either. Her half-sister Samantha and father Thomas Markle, have been among those feeding the gossip mill. But again, nothing they’ve said has ever been backed up by actual evidence. Just a lot of recycled tabloid drama.
Meanwhile, Meghan’s been hit with some of the most vicious online hate campaigns seen in recent years—stuff that often crosses into deeply misogynistic and racially charged territory. Investigations have uncovered coordinated efforts to smear her online, painting a clear picture of just how targeted the harassment has become.
Even when Meghan and Harry try to push back—like sharing personal moments in their documentary or dropping casual, joyful moments like the hospital dancing clip—those same clips get twisted and used against them. It’s a cycle of trolling and confirmation bias that never seems to end.
At the heart of all this is something way bigger than a royal pregnancy rumor. It’s about the toxicity of online hate, how fast misinformation spreads, and how public figures—especially women of color—get treated when they don’t fit into the boxes people want to keep them in.