Some of Hollywood's most powerful men are criticising Meghan Markle. It speaks to a bigger issue.

Chances are you've seen a lot of reports about Meghan Markle in the news lately. There's an even greater chance such reports have positioned Meghan in a negative light. 

Last week, a Spotify Executive named Bill Simmons decided to give his own take.

"I wish I had been involved in the 'Meghan and Harry leave Spotify' negotiation," he said, regarding the news Harry and Meghan's $29 million dollar Spotify deal was axed. 

"The F**king Grifters. That's the podcast we should have launched with them." 

With just a few short words, Simmons had managed to restart a fire of hatred hurtling towards Harry and Meghan. But it's Meghan who online copped far more negative comments than Harry, as has always been the case. 

Spotify exec Bill Simmons has had a lot to say about Meghan Markle. Image: Getty.

Jumping on the Meghan-hate bandwagon next was a Hollywood talent agency head honcho called Jeremy Zimmer.  

Seizing the opportunity to publicly sh*t on Meghan, he said: "Turns out Meghan Markle was not a great audio talent, or necessarily any kind of talent."

Zimmer added: "And, you know, just because you're famous, doesn't make you great at something."

Then came reports Meghan had 'faked' conducting the interviews for her Archetypes podcast, allegations Meghan also faked her 'persona' on the podcast to try to make herself sound more endearing and relatable. 

This isn't the first time Meghan and her husband have been mercilessly savaged, and it certainly won't be the last. But the hatred and criticism levelled at Meghan in particular - most often from men in powerful positions in Hollywood and the media - can't be ignored.

When Meghan said she was at her very lowest point mentally, Piers Morgan figured it was the perfect time to thrash her on one of Britain's most-watched breakfast television shows. 

And ever since that 2021 televised tirade, he has continued to use so much of his energy to level vicious words at Meghan, almost making a career out of it. Using words that drip with disdain.

He once called her a "poisonous rat". A "ruthless, social climbing, fame-obsessed piece of work". He then recommended she retreat into a "cavernous trash can of whiny brat celebrity irrelevance".

Watch: a look back at when Piers Morgan lost his sh*t over Meghan Markle. Post continues below.

Who could forget just how cruel Jeremy Clarkson was towards Meghan?

Last year he simply felt the need for the world to understand that he doesn't just hate her like he hates a bona fide serial killer, like Rose West, who kidnapped young women, locked them in her basement, abused, raped and then murdered them.

No, he hates her way more than that. 

"At night, I'm unable to sleep as I lie there, grinding my teeth and dreaming of the day when she is made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while the crowds chant, 'Shame!' and throw lumps of excrement at her," he wrote.

This wasn't just some terrible online troll writing a comment underneath a social media post. No, Clarkson's words were published in one of Britain's largest newspapers - signifying his power.

Often the defence from those who level criticism against Meghan and Harry is that they're not punching down. They say Meghan and Harry are the epitome of a privileged couple who don't acknowledge or realise their immense privilege. 

And there is considerable truth to that argument, and it is valid in some instances.

But where the pendulum swings in the other direction is when Hollywood's leading men decide to use their own position of privilege and power to level contempt towards Meghan in particular. 

Sure, they often go after Harry too. But the consequences are undeniably different for Meghan, both as a woman, someone who isn't a through-and-through royal, and also as someone who is a person of colour. 

It's not just older white male British media commentators who go for the jugular.

Who could forget the recent South Park episode where their characters 'The Prince and Princess of Canada' looked exactly like cartoon versions of Harry and Meghan. 

In the episode, they called the Princess an "Instagram-loving b*tch wife" and depicted her to pretty much be an empty vessel with no intelligence. 

South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have since faced some backlash over their depiction. But overwhelmingly, the response was in favour of criticising Meghan. Just looking at the comments underneath a clip of the South Park episode featured on YouTube proves this. 

"His wife was as empty as a hollow trash can. That tore me up," one commenter says. 

"Somehow the cartoon version of Meghan is less empty than the real one. Moaning Markle," claims another.

These examples aren't anomalies, nor are they the harshest comments. But they highlight a terrifying reality. 

Meghan, like any public figure, shouldn't be immune to criticism. But it's who is levelling the criticism, and how they are doing so, that we must always remember.

Feature Image: Getty/Mamamia.