Simon Rex, best known for his role in Scary Movie and for his time as a host on MTV in the 1990s, has said that he once turned down a cash offer to lie about having a fling with Meghan Markle, aka the Duchess of Sussex.
Rex, 47, has previously said that he enjoyed a brief two-date romance with Markle, 40, circa 2005. The couple were both cast in an episode of a sitcom named Cuts. That’s where they met.
Since then, Markle went on to star in the TV mega-hit Suits before marrying Prince Harry in 2018 and beginning her second career as a royal. The couple surprised the world in 2020 when they resigned from royal duties and decamped to Los Angeles.
Markle and Prince Harry later made shocking allegations of bullying and racism against unnamed members of the Royal Family in an interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Rex, meanwhile, has not had any public relationships other than rumors he dated Paris Hilton for a time. In 2021, Rex’s career was given a rebirth after he received positive reviews for his role in the movie Red Rocket. The movie’s plot deals with a retired adult film star returning to his hometown.
Rex said that he would go on food stamps before accepting money for lying about a relationship with Markle
Rex said in a March 2022 interview with The Guardian that he would rather go on food stamps than accept $70,000 for lying about a fling with Meghan Markle. The piece says that Rex received offers from “several UK tabloids” to make the allegations.
Rex said, “I was broke as f**k! I really needed the money. But I’ll be on food stamps before I do that.” In response, Rex said that Markle sent him a thank you note that read, “It’s nice to know there are still good people.” According to Rex, he has the letter hanging in his home in Joshua Tree, California.
The Guardian piece sheds new light on Rex and Markle’s relationship in general, referring to their dating history as containing “one platonic lunch.”
Rex said in a 2020 interview that he and Markle “never even kissed”
Rex was asked about his connection to Markle in a 2020 interview on the Hollywood Raw podcast. Rex said, “Nothing happened. We never even kissed. We hung out once in a very non-datey way. She was just someone I had met on a TV show and we got lunch. That was the extent of it.”
Rex went on to talk about the money offers he received for false information about his relationship with Markle. Rex reiterated that he turned down the money, “I said no to a lot of money because I didn’t feel right lying and f*****g up the royal f*****g family.”
Rex said in a 2018 interview that Markle wouldn’t date him because he used to be an adult film star
Rex told The Sun in a 2018 interview that he believed that Markle would not date him because of his past as an adult film star. In the early 1990s, Rex had been open about being photographed for and recorded in pornographic magazines and videos.
Rex went on to say that it was possible that Markle didn’t want to continue to see him because his breath smelled of garlic following their lunch date. He said, “It’s possible that she found out afterwards. There’s so many questions I don’t know the answer to about why we never went on a second date. But I’m blaming it on the garlic noodles.”
In that same interview, Rex describes his relationship with Paris Hilton as “casual dating,” something he also now denies. Despite being adamant that he never dated Markle, Rex appeared on a 2018 list published by The Observer of the Duchess of Sussex’s former lovers.