Meghan Markle’s Suits co-star reveals the ‘lovely’ text he got from the Duchess – after claiming they had ‘zero communication’ after the show

Meghan Markle’s former Suits co-star has revealed the sweet message the Duchess sent him as he started a new podcast – after previously admitting the pair had little contact after the show.

Meghan Markle and Patrick J. Adam played on-screen couple Michael Ross and Rachel Zane – and their friendship proved strong when he and his wife were invited to the Sussexes’ 2018 royal wedding in Windsor.

But the 43-year-old actor admitted he recently received a heartwarming message of support from Prince Harry’s wife, despite them having lost touch in recent years.

“She’s living a very different life now for obvious and important reasons,” he said this week while answering fans’ questions on Reddit.

“But then I heard about the podcast. I received a sweet text message telling me how excited she was for us and asking how she could help.

‘So nice to still have so much support and friendship after so many years.’

Sidebar – hosted by Patrick and fellow Suits star Sarah Rafferty, 51, who played no-nonsense assistant Donna Paulsen – is “dedicated to revisiting and breaking down” the hit legal drama, with “special guests starring both in front of and behind the camera.”

The Duchess will likely have had plenty of advice to give the couple, having launched her own podcast called Archetypes on Spotify in August 2022.

Meghan’s award-winning podcast welcomed celebrity guests including Serena Williams, Mariah Carey, Andy Cohen and Jameela Jamil, to name a few.

It has been downloaded over ten million times, although there has not been a new episode since November 2022.

But it looks like Meghan has another podcast episode in her.

When asked by Entertainment Weekly if the Duchess would be at the Sidebar, Sarah said: ‘Everyone is invited and everyone has been so supportive. It’s amazing.

“I just texted one of our directors, Mike Smith. Rachael Harris had some comments on our Instagram Live this morning, I can’t wait for Sheila Sazs to be introduced on the show. I can’t wait to talk to Max Beesley and all the British actors we had.”

Suits originally aired on USA Network for nine seasons, from 2011 to 2019, and saw genius college dropout Mike Ross (Patrick) join a high-profile Manhattan law firm, with Sarah taking on the role of no-nonsense assistant Donna Paulsen.

The Duchess played Rachel Zane – a paralegal who becomes a formidable lawyer and eventually marries Ross.

On his podcast, Patrick shared how Meghan was “perfect” for the role of Rachel, saying: “It was pretty clear she was going to get the part from the moment we did the chemistry read.”

Suits was added to Netflix last June and quickly attracted viewers with its binge-friendly catalog of 134 episodes, while skyrocketing to the most streamed show of 2023.

Earlier this year, it was reported that a spin-off series titled Suits: LA was in the works – four years after the original show that put Meghan in the spotlight ended.

Patrick – who years ago rallied behind Meghan as an “enthusiastic, friendly, cooperative, giving, cheerful and supportive member of their television family” when she was accused of “bullying” royal staff – revealed earlier this year that he “sero communication’ with his former on-screen love interest.

In February, and fellow show lead Gabriel Macht confirmed they have not kept in touch with the Duchess following the legal drama’s streaming success.

Speak with The Hollywood Reporter on the set of T-Mobile’s Super Bowl commercial featuring the duo, the pair were asked, “Have you spoken to Meghan Markle recently?”

“I haven’t communicated with her other than seeing her great support for the revival, and that’s been really nice,” said American actor Gabriel, who played Harvey Specter in the series.

Patrick added: ‘Zero. No, no communication.’

The actor then jokingly pretended to get a call and said, “Oh, wait a minute. There she is. Oh, I have to go.”

At the Golden Globes in January, Patrick and Gabriel presented the award for best TV drama before being joined by fellow stars Gina Torres and Sarah Rafferty.

Gina – who played lawyer Jessica Pearson in the US legal drama – revealed at the ceremony in LA that the ex-castmates simply ‘don’t [Meghan’s number’ when asked if anyone had reached out to the former actress.

An insider told Page Six that the Duchess of Sussex was invited to the event, but ‘unfortunately’ wasn’t able to make an appearance because of a ‘previous commitment’.

Speaking to Variety on the red carpet, Gina was asked: ‘Who texted Meghan and said “you’ve gotta come to the Golden Globes, Meghan Markle”.’ 

‘We don’t have her number. We just don’t so. She’ll see. She’ll watch. She’ll be happy that we’re here,’ said the 54-year-old US actress, who attended the Royal wedding between Prince Harry and Meghan in 2018.

The interviewer also asked: ‘Did you plan this? Are you all texting each other?’ She explained: ‘When it all came through, we were all texting each other. Yes, our text thread is insane right now. So it’s very exciting.’

Discussing Meghan’s absence, a Globes insider told Page Six: ‘We asked the Duchess, but we were told that, unfortunately, she had a previous commitment.’

Over the weekend, the Duchess attended a charity gala in support of LA Children’s Hospital with her BFF Kelly McKee Zajfen.

The friends were seen holding hands and posing for photos while sweetly beaming at each other.