Even Queen Bey was intimidated by Meghan Markle.
During an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Thursday, Billy Eichner shared that the “intense” protocol for meeting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the London premiere of “The Lion King” even had Beyoncé breaking a sweat.
“We were all kind of nervous, even Beyoncé,” Eichner, 40, said. In disbelief, Kimmel boldly proclaimed Meghan and Harry “should be bowing to her.”
“What makes you nervous is that the days leading up to it, they email you a protocol of how you’re supposed to greet Prince Harry and Meghan,” Eichner continued. “You’re supposed to say, ‘Your Royal Highness,’ you can’t speak until your hands are in a handshake with his. My plus one … they said he had to stand behind me and not speak unless he was spoken to.”
“I was like, ‘Does that same rule apply to Jay-Z?’” he joked. “I don’t know. I have a feeling it doesn’t!”
Eichner also confessed that he was particularly stressed about how to address Meghan. “Your Highness sounds a little weird and bowing feels weird,” he said. “In my head, I’m like, ‘What do you call her?” I kept thinking she’s Princess Markle, but that sounds like a character on Super Mario Brothers.”
Luckily, Meghan and Harry were “very, very nice and totally chill and down-to-earth and lovely,” according to Eichner. In fact, the “Billy on the Street” comedian and Meghan had a conversation about their days at Northwestern University, where they both studied acting.
Eichner’s statements about the royal couple comes days after he retweeted a video of himself talking to costar Seth Rogen about what he was going to say once they approached. “[I’m going to say] pleasure to meet you,” he says in the video. “I’m gonna say it, I’m gonna say it.” In the background, Meghan can be heard saying the outing was “a date night for us.”
Luckily, Beyoncé’s nerves didn’t get the best of her, as she and Meghan embraced on the gold carpet.