Amazon’s romantic royal comedy Red, White & Royal Blue hit screens on Friday, with the adaptation of the hugely popular novel by American author Casey McQuiston already finding a fanbase online following its debut.
The movie follows a fictionalized version of the British royal family, whose Prince Henry (Nicholas Galitzine) falls in love with Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez), the son of the U.S. president. The enemies-to-lovers narrative is a heartwarming tale of love overcoming adversity when it is projected onto the world stage.
However, for royal watchers, director Matthew Lopez’s numerous references, tributes and Easter eggs towards the real members of the British monarchy may bring another level of interest to the project.
Here, Newsweek highlights a collection of Red, White & Royal Blue‘s top nods towards the House of Windsor and its crowd of famous faces. Spoilers for Red, White & Royal Blue ahead.
Wedding Cake Demolition
PRIME VIDEO
In the opening scenes of Red, White & Royal Blue, the royal wedding of heir to the throne, Prince Philip (Thomas Flynn), and Princess Martha (Bridget Benstead) takes place at Buckingham Palace, London, with an oversized wedding cake towering over the reception.
In an offhand comment, Prince Henry says: “When the revolution happens, it will be because of this wedding! The cake alone cost £75,000. They practically had to break the doors down to get it inside.”
This is a reference to the real-life problem that happened at Buckingham Palace in London during the wedding preparations for Prince William and Kate Middleton’s reception in 2011.
During a 2021 documentary for British TV, the cake designer for the royal wedding, Fiona Cairns, recounted how a door at the palace had to be taken off of its hinges to get the trolley carrying the cake through to the state apartments.
“When the queen came to see us, the cake wasn’t completely finished,” Cairns said. “I remember her saying: ‘I hear that you’ve been dismantling my house?’
“I said to her: ‘We had to take a door down from the room below for the trolley to go through with the cake,’ but it was all put back in the end, so it was fine.”
Royal Wedding Tiara
PRIME VIDEO/Jonathan Brady – WPA Pool/Getty Images
Another royal wedding nod is there in the movie with the choice of tiara the fictional Princess Martha wore for her nuptials.
The diamond headdress, styled by costume designer Keith Madden, was a replica of the art-deco diamond tiara worn by Meghan Markle on her 2018 wedding day.
Queen Mary’s bandeau tiara (as it is officially known) was made for Queen Elizabeth II’s grandmother in 1932 and was loaned by Elizabeth to Meghan for the duchess’ walk down the aisle of St George’s Chapel, Berkshire, England, on May 19, 2018.
Public Grief
PRIME VIDEO
A more touching similarity between the fictional Prince Henry in Red, White and Royal Blue and Britain’s own Prince Harry is the plot narrative that the royal lost a parent when young. He was encouraged to mourn publicly, despite not wanting to.
In the movie, Henry apologizes to Alex for appearing rude at a meeting years before. “I’m sorry I was a p**** to you. It’s no excuse, but I was a p**** to everyone in those days,” he said.
“My father had died a few months before, and the palace insisted on parading me around,” Henry added.
In recent years, Prince Harry has spoken on a number of occasions about the impact that his mother, Princess Diana’s, death in 1997 had on him when he was just 12 years old. He has also discussed how the experience of being asked to walk behind his mother’s coffin in front of a global audience and meeting members of the weeping public affected him, most notably in his recently released memoir, Spare.
‘I Am the Spare’
PRIME VIDEO/RAMONA ROSALES/PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
Harry’s memoir, and its provocative title, is evoked in another moment of Red, White & Royal Blue, where Prince Henry refers to himself as “the spare.”
Spare is a term that has become associated with the monarchy and wider aristocracy, deriving from a traditional saying: “Heir and a spare.”
This refers to a parent having two children: one (the eldest) to inherit their family name and legacy, or, in the royals’ case, the crown; and the second (youngest) to act as a backup or spare, in case anything should happen to the first.
Harry gave his memoir the title of Spare after noting that he had had the term attributed to him all his life. “The Heir and the Spare—there was no judgment about it, but also no ambiguity,” he wrote.
“I was the shadow, the support, the Plan B. I was brought into the world in case something happened to Willy [Prince William],” Harry wrote. “I was summoned to provide backup, distraction, diversion and, if necessary, a spare part. Kidney, perhaps. Blood transfusion. Speck of bone marrow. This was all made explicitly clear to me from the start of life’s journey and regularly reinforced thereafter.”
Royal Fashion Nod
PRIME VIDEO/Samir Hussein/WireImage
A stylistic Easter egg hidden by Red, White & Royal Blue‘s creative team was an item of costume, which has taken on legendary status within the royal fashion sphere as the must-have “princess dress.”
Designed by British fashion brand, Beulah London, the “Ahana” mid-length dress with statement pleated details, covered buttons and a matching covered belt has been worn by a number of major world royals including Kate, the Princess of Wales.
Kate first wore a pale pink version of the dress at the Wimbledon tennis championships in London in 2021, and she rewore it in July 2023 to attend the opening of a new museum.
In the movie, the dress is worn by Prince Henry’s sister, Princess Beatrice (Ellie Bamber).
Tabloid Hacking
PRIME VIDEO/Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images
A pivotal moment in the movie revolves around the leaking of a series of emails between Prince Henry and Alex Claremont-Diaz, which end up being published by the tabloid media.
In a scene where the news is broken to Henry, Princess Beatrice says: “Your emails to Alex have been hacked. They were posted to Reddit [social media site] overnight. The Mirror and The Sun ran them this morning.”
The subject of royals and hacking by the tabloid media have been pulled into focus in recent months as Prince Harry has pursued a number of lawsuits against British tabloid publishers, including owners of the Daily Mirror and The Sun, over historic allegations of unlawful information gathering.
The prince became the first senior royal to appear in a witness box for over 130 years in June. He provided testimony connected with his complaints regarding what he perceived as invasive reports into his personal life between the 1990s and 2010s.
Harry has stated that holding the media to account for their actions is part of his life’s work and his legal battles remain ongoing.
‘Prince of England’s Heart’
PRIME VIDEO/Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
In a scene of Red, White & Royal Blue after the characters of Prince Henry and Alex Claremont-Diaz’s relationship has been publicly exposed, the royal refers to a nickname he was given. It carries a strong link to one attributed to the late Princess Diana.
“I feel so lost right now,” he says. “I mean, they used to call me the ‘Prince of England’s Heart’, and now it feels like everyone hates me.”
The “Prince of England’s Heart” reference could be derived from Princess Diana’s posthumous moniker of “Queen of Hearts.”
The term was first connected to the princess by herself, during her bombshell 1995 TV interview with BBC’s Panorama show. In it, journalist Martin Bashir (who was later accused of having deceived the princess in an attempt to secure the interview) asked if Diana believed she would ever be queen.
“No,” Diana said. “No, I don’t. I’d like to be a queen of people’s hearts… in people’s hearts. But I don’t see myself being queen of this country.”
After her tragic death at the age of 36 in 1997, a number of posters and tributes left outside the royal palaces were dedicated to the “Queen of Hearts.”
Red, White & Royal Blue is available to stream now on Amazon Prime Video.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek’s royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek’s .
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 Support@springupdates.com. We’d love to hear from you.
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Amazon’s romantic royal comedy Red, White & Royal Blue hit screens on Friday, with the adaptation of the hugely popular novel by American author Casey McQuiston already finding a fanbase online following its debut.
The movie follows a fictionalized version of the British royal family, whose Prince Henry (Nicholas Galitzine) falls in love with Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez), the son of the U.S. president. The enemies-to-lovers narrative is a heartwarming tale of love overcoming adversity when it is projected onto the world stage.
However, for royal watchers, director Matthew Lopez’s numerous references, tributes and Easter eggs towards the real members of the British monarchy may bring another level of interest to the project.
Here, Newsweek highlights a collection of Red, White & Royal Blue‘s top nods towards the House of Windsor and its crowd of famous faces. Spoilers for Red, White & Royal Blue ahead.
Wedding Cake Demolition
PRIME VIDEO
In the opening scenes of Red, White & Royal Blue, the royal wedding of heir to the throne, Prince Philip (Thomas Flynn), and Princess Martha (Bridget Benstead) takes place at Buckingham Palace, London, with an oversized wedding cake towering over the reception.
In an offhand comment, Prince Henry says: “When the revolution happens, it will be because of this wedding! The cake alone cost £75,000. They practically had to break the doors down to get it inside.”
This is a reference to the real-life problem that happened at Buckingham Palace in London during the wedding preparations for Prince William and Kate Middleton’s reception in 2011.
During a 2021 documentary for British TV, the cake designer for the royal wedding, Fiona Cairns, recounted how a door at the palace had to be taken off of its hinges to get the trolley carrying the cake through to the state apartments.
“When the queen came to see us, the cake wasn’t completely finished,” Cairns said. “I remember her saying: ‘I hear that you’ve been dismantling my house?’
“I said to her: ‘We had to take a door down from the room below for the trolley to go through with the cake,’ but it was all put back in the end, so it was fine.”
Royal Wedding Tiara
PRIME VIDEO/Jonathan Brady – WPA Pool/Getty Images
Another royal wedding nod is there in the movie with the choice of tiara the fictional Princess Martha wore for her nuptials.
The diamond headdress, styled by costume designer Keith Madden, was a replica of the art-deco diamond tiara worn by Meghan Markle on her 2018 wedding day.
Queen Mary’s bandeau tiara (as it is officially known) was made for Queen Elizabeth II’s grandmother in 1932 and was loaned by Elizabeth to Meghan for the duchess’ walk down the aisle of St George’s Chapel, Berkshire, England, on May 19, 2018.
Public Grief
PRIME VIDEO
A more touching similarity between the fictional Prince Henry in Red, White and Royal Blue and Britain’s own Prince Harry is the plot narrative that the royal lost a parent when young. He was encouraged to mourn publicly, despite not wanting to.
In the movie, Henry apologizes to Alex for appearing rude at a meeting years before. “I’m sorry I was a p**** to you. It’s no excuse, but I was a p**** to everyone in those days,” he said.
“My father had died a few months before, and the palace insisted on parading me around,” Henry added.
In recent years, Prince Harry has spoken on a number of occasions about the impact that his mother, Princess Diana’s, death in 1997 had on him when he was just 12 years old. He has also discussed how the experience of being asked to walk behind his mother’s coffin in front of a global audience and meeting members of the weeping public affected him, most notably in his recently released memoir, Spare.
‘I Am the Spare’
PRIME VIDEO/RAMONA ROSALES/PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
Harry’s memoir, and its provocative title, is evoked in another moment of Red, White & Royal Blue, where Prince Henry refers to himself as “the spare.”
Spare is a term that has become associated with the monarchy and wider aristocracy, deriving from a traditional saying: “Heir and a spare.”
This refers to a parent having two children: one (the eldest) to inherit their family name and legacy, or, in the royals’ case, the crown; and the second (youngest) to act as a backup or spare, in case anything should happen to the first.
Harry gave his memoir the title of Spare after noting that he had had the term attributed to him all his life. “The Heir and the Spare—there was no judgment about it, but also no ambiguity,” he wrote.
“I was the shadow, the support, the Plan B. I was brought into the world in case something happened to Willy [Prince William],” Harry wrote. “I was summoned to provide backup, distraction, diversion and, if necessary, a spare part. Kidney, perhaps. Blood transfusion. Speck of bone marrow. This was all made explicitly clear to me from the start of life’s journey and regularly reinforced thereafter.”
Royal Fashion Nod
PRIME VIDEO/Samir Hussein/WireImage
A stylistic Easter egg hidden by Red, White & Royal Blue‘s creative team was an item of costume, which has taken on legendary status within the royal fashion sphere as the must-have “princess dress.”
Designed by British fashion brand, Beulah London, the “Ahana” mid-length dress with statement pleated details, covered buttons and a matching covered belt has been worn by a number of major world royals including Kate, the Princess of Wales.
Kate first wore a pale pink version of the dress at the Wimbledon tennis championships in London in 2021, and she rewore it in July 2023 to attend the opening of a new museum.
In the movie, the dress is worn by Prince Henry’s sister, Princess Beatrice (Ellie Bamber).
Tabloid Hacking
PRIME VIDEO/Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images
A pivotal moment in the movie revolves around the leaking of a series of emails between Prince Henry and Alex Claremont-Diaz, which end up being published by the tabloid media.
In a scene where the news is broken to Henry, Princess Beatrice says: “Your emails to Alex have been hacked. They were posted to Reddit [social media site] overnight. The Mirror and The Sun ran them this morning.”
The subject of royals and hacking by the tabloid media have been pulled into focus in recent months as Prince Harry has pursued a number of lawsuits against British tabloid publishers, including owners of the Daily Mirror and The Sun, over historic allegations of unlawful information gathering.
The prince became the first senior royal to appear in a witness box for over 130 years in June. He provided testimony connected with his complaints regarding what he perceived as invasive reports into his personal life between the 1990s and 2010s.
Harry has stated that holding the media to account for their actions is part of his life’s work and his legal battles remain ongoing.
‘Prince of England’s Heart’
PRIME VIDEO/Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
In a scene of Red, White & Royal Blue after the characters of Prince Henry and Alex Claremont-Diaz’s relationship has been publicly exposed, the royal refers to a nickname he was given. It carries a strong link to one attributed to the late Princess Diana.
“I feel so lost right now,” he says. “I mean, they used to call me the ‘Prince of England’s Heart’, and now it feels like everyone hates me.”
The “Prince of England’s Heart” reference could be derived from Princess Diana’s posthumous moniker of “Queen of Hearts.”
The term was first connected to the princess by herself, during her bombshell 1995 TV interview with BBC’s Panorama show. In it, journalist Martin Bashir (who was later accused of having deceived the princess in an attempt to secure the interview) asked if Diana believed she would ever be queen.
“No,” Diana said. “No, I don’t. I’d like to be a queen of people’s hearts… in people’s hearts. But I don’t see myself being queen of this country.”
After her tragic death at the age of 36 in 1997, a number of posters and tributes left outside the royal palaces were dedicated to the “Queen of Hearts.”
Red, White & Royal Blue is available to stream now on Amazon Prime Video.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek’s royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek’s .
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 Support@springupdates.com. We’d love to hear from you.
