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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have become the latest public figures to face a roasting by the Fox adult animated comedy show Family Guy.
The new takedown of the royal couple comes just eight months after they faced an extended grilling by Comedy Central show South Park, which spoofed their exit from the monarchy and the publication of Harry's memoir, Spare.
Harry and Meghan appeared as characters voiced by series regular actors in the third episode of Family Guy's 22nd season, which aired on Sunday, as part of a cutaway unrelated to the main plot.
In the scene, central character Peter Griffin announces his intention to undertake a solo adventure, telling friends: "That's fine I'll go it alone, just like Meghan Markle and Prince Harry."
A cutaway then showed animated versions of the duke and duchess sunbathing by a pool in front of a mansion. A butler approached Harry handing him an envelope saying: "Sir, your millions from Netflix for no one knows what."
This is a reference to the deal signed between the royal couple's Archewell Productions company and streaming giant Netflix in 2020. So far, Harry and Meghan have produced three docuseries for the platform.
In the show, the prince responds to "put it with the rest of them," while Meghan interjects by saying: "Babe, time to do our daily $250,000 sponsored Instagram post for Del Taco."
"I shouldn't have left the made-up nonsense," Harry replies, alluding to regret at leaving the royal family.
Newsweek approached representatives of Fox and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle via email for comment.
First airing in 1999, created by writer and voice actor Seth MacFarlane, Family Guy has courted controversy over the past two decades, earning criticism for its explicit visual gags and toilet humor.
Despite this, the show has a loyal fanbase around the world, counting even Prince Harry himself as a casual viewer in his teenage years, a fact he revealed in his January 2023 memoir.
Recounting his days at elite boarding school Eton College, Harry revealed that he and his friends would smoke marijuana before giggling over the animated show.
"We'd all head to one of our rooms and giggle ourselves sick over an episode or two of a new show. Family Guy," he wrote before adding that he felt a kinship with one particular character.
"I felt an inexplicable bond with Stewie," he said of the Griffin family's genius baby with adult consciousness and the ability to speak, describing him as a "prophet without honor."
Family Guy shares another tenuous link with Harry. A consulting producer and former writer on the show, Gary Janetti, went on to produce a separate adult animated show titled: The Prince.
The 2021 show offered a fictionalized version of the life of Harry's nephew, Prince George, and featured the duke and Meghan as characters with friend and neighbor Orlando Bloom playing Harry.
The show was canceled after only one season and was criticized by royal fans for spoofing George, who at the time of its initial broadcast was eight years old.
The spoofing by Family Guy will prove easier for Harry and Meghan to digest than their appearance as subject matter for South Park.
The show featured a full length episode centred around fictionalized versions of the couple, identified as the "Prince and Princess of Canada," who, after separating from the monarchy, move to the small town of South Park demanding privacy in conspicuous ways.
After the show's February broadcast, tabloid reporting suggested the royal couple were considering legal action, something a spokesperson said at the time was "baseless and boring."
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more