Prince Harry 'Not Yet Comfortable' With Meghan Markle's Hollywood Celebrity Branding, Marketing Expert Claims

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry allegedly have different takes on their branding.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex moved to California after stepping back from their royal duties. They also signed multi-million and multi-year deals with Spotify and Netflix. After the move, many started to view them as Hollywood celebrities and no longer royalties.

Pauline Maclaran, a professor of marketing and consumer research at Royal Holloway, University of London, weighed in on the couple's public image. It's undeniable that Prince Harry and Markle were "fairly coherent," but there were also signs of tensions because of their different branding views, Maclaran opined.

"Individually, they have had very different brand images," she told Express.co.uk.

She pointed out that Markle was oriented around her status "as a (previously) minor Hollywood celebrity associated with the 'Suits' brand." On the other hand, Prince Harry was embedded in the "royal family brand." She noted that the Duke of Sussex seemed "not yet comfortable with Hollywood celebrity culture."

"The mix of these different brand cultures is bound to create tensions at times and certainly did when Meghan tried to be a working royal during their time in England," she added.

The professor, who co-authored "Royal Fever," also referenced Prince Harry and Markle's recent appearance at the NAACP Image Awards, where many felt that Prince Harry looked uncomfortable on stage, unlike his wife. According to Maclaran, the duke's "unease" reflected their different brands, proving that he was not yet comfortable with the Hollywood celebrity culture.

Body language expert Judi James also pointed out the difference in comfort levels between Prince Harry and Markle at the same event when they took the stage to deliver their joint acceptance speech for the NAACP President's Award.

"Harry's body language on arrival looked rather awkward and anxious," James was quoted by Woman and Home as saying. "While Meghan's confidence levels looked off the scale, the way he crooked his free arm rather than the one she was holding and placed the hand across his stomach in an anxious-looking barrier gesture suggested he had returned to that state we saw him adopt when they first moved to the U.S."

She added that Prince Harry's nerves were as evident as his admiration for his wife when he let Markle shine on stage.

"Harry 'presented' her to the host with both hands, stepping back as he did so to again suggest she was the star of the show and he was there as support," James said.