Ellen DeGeneres, Jameela Jamil praise Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for taking legal action

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s just-announced legal action against Associated Newspapers — which the royal has accused of launching a “ruthless campaign” to vilify his wife — will be hashed out by lawyers, but the couple already appears to be winning in the court of public opinion.

The couple, currently on a royal tour of Africa, have been flooded with messages of support since Prince Harry issued a statement announcing legal proceedings against the parent company of the British tabloid, Daily Mail, on Sunday over its publication last February of a private, handwritten letter from the duchess to her estranged father, Thomas Markle. The couple’s lawyers have claimed the paper violated their privacy and copyright in an effort to “publish false and deliberately derogatory stories” about Meghan.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, attend a reception for young people, community and civil society leaders at the Residence of the British High Commissioner in Cape Town, South Africa, September 24, 2019. Facundo Arrizabalaga/Pool via REUTERS
Prince Harry issued a statement on Tuesday announcing legal action in response to a British tabloid publishing Meghan Markle's private letter to her father. (Photo: Facundo Arrizabalaga/Pool via REUTERS)

Prince Harry also rose to his wife’s defense and blasted the “relentless propaganda” surrounding her media coverage, writing, “My wife has become one of the latest victims of a British tabloid press that wages campaigns against individuals with no thought to the consequences — a ruthless campaign that has escalated over the past year, throughout her pregnancy and while raising our newborn son.”

He went on to express his fear of “history repeating itself” thanks to media intrusion, citing his late mother, Princess Diana.

Ellen DeGeneres and Jameela Jamil were among those hailing the new parents for taking action. Prince Harry’s statement as a protective husband has also received significant praise.

Not everyone is impressed, however. British talk show host Piers Morgan took to Twitter to call the couple’s statement “disingenuous” and “savage,” while one of his followers blasted them as “a pair of weak narcissists.” Other commenters accused Prince Harry of “using the Diana card” and claimed he and Meghan should become private citizens if they objected to the pitfalls of royal life.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.