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Uh oh: What was the ‘foul’ stench at Meghan Markle’s wedding and which of her ‘Suits’ co-stars literally couldn’t handle it?

Does the 'he who dealt it' rule apply here?

Prince Harry looking at Meghan Markle in their Harry & Meghan documentary
via Netflix

We all know the feeling of finding ourselves at an event and wincing at an unexpectedly disgusting smell. It turns out, a similar situation also happened at Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s royal wedding in 2018.

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The event during which former Suits star and Prince William’s younger brother tied the knot took place in 2018 was one of the most covered in global media. Six years later, it’s still fairly often revisited, especially with more and more people getting interested in the royal family.

Like always, the Royal wedding was memed by thousands, if not millions of users online. Luckily, they had a lot of material that just asked to be turned into a meme or two… hundred. One of them was thanks to Markle’s former co-star from Suits.

Who was an actor who was caught looking absurdly irritated at Meghan Markle’s wedding?

The actor who stole the meme show was no other than Markle’s Suits co-star, Rick Hoffman. During the wedding, the actor was caught having a rather…disgusted expression on his face, immediately making the headlines and social media reactions.

Many Suits fans made jokes about how it’s symbolic of his character Louis Litt’s personality. Others made jokes about how the wedding wasn’t “Litt,” which left the actor unamused. Fair enough, though, on the other hand, how great can the pre-party at the church ceremony be, am I right?

Those not familiar with Suits should still recognize Hoffman. Besides starring in the legal drama, where he made a name for himself, Hoffman also has some other popular productions under his belt, in which he appeared as a guest. These include appearances in different CSI series, Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson’s Ballers, The Mentalist, or Law & Order: LA. It looks like starring in franchises that revolve around crime and legal issues is just his cup of tea (how British).

Why did Rick Hoffman look as if something was off at Meghan Markle’s wedding?

Okay, so we know who Hoffman is and outlined his meme reputation following Harry and Markle’s wedding. But why did he have this expression during the ceremony? Well, it turns out a certain “foul” smell was to blame.

This February, Hoffman was a guest in Barstool Sports’ “Chicks in the Office” podcast, where he finally let us in on the secret behind his star moment at the royal wedding.

Rick Hoffman attends the LOS ANGELES FAN SCREENING for TRISTAR PICTURES and SPYGLASS MEDIA GROUP'S "THANKSGIVING" at Vista Theatre on November 14, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
The actor Litt up the meme quality of the wedding. Photo by Stewart Cook/Getty Images for Sony Pictures

“As time goes on [at the wedding], I’m starting to smell something really terrible and foul. And I’m very sensitive when it comes to that,” Hoffman said. He followed that, he tried to cover his mouth with his hands, which had a “coconut-vanilla moisturizer” on them to cover the smell. However, when that didn’t work, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes, and that’s when the cameras caught him. Bullseye.

What was that “foul” smell Hoffman experienced at the wedding?

In the same podcast, Hoffman pointed out he asked other guests around him if they felt that stench as well. “I went over to them [other Suits co-stars near him] because I don’t want them to think it’s me. Because I’m so particular when it comes to hygiene. So I’m like ‘do you guys smell that?’ And they’re like, ‘no.'” So he was left in his misery all by himself.

Hoffman also added that, quite ironically, the Suits co-star who knew the best about the actor’s strict hygiene routines was none other than Meghan Markle. So if you’d ask me why such a situation specifically happened at her wedding, I’d say it was written in the stars.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex arrive at the Lagos airport for Official State Welcome on May 12, 2024 in Lagos, Nigeria.
The couple were reported to use specific candles at the wedding. Perhaps they were expired? Photo by Andrew Esiebo/Getty Images for The Archewell Foundation

Unluckily for us and everyone else eager to discover what was in the air that afternoon in the St. George’s Chapel, Hoffman never said what smell that was. And with no nose-witnesses to his experience, there’s no way of knowing.

However, in 2018 InStyle reported (via Popsugar) the newly-wed pair used Diptyque’s candles before the ceremony. So maybe they went bad, or something was wrong. Or maybe they just Litt up Hoffman’s senses so much he became a meme prince of the wedding? We’re hoping to find out one day.