Red, White & Royal Blue's Prince Henry Is Based on a Surprising Member of the British Royal Family

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When writing Red, White & Royal Blue, author Casey McQuiston didn't draw too specifically from the British royal family.

"I came up with the idea for the book while obsessively following the presidential election in early 2016, but that’s only part of it," McQuiston told SheReads. "That spring, I was also watching a new season of Veep and alternating between reading a dense Hillary Clinton biography by Carl Bernstein and The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan. I was so intrigued by these incredibly high profile worlds that are still very exclusive – everyone sees everything you do, but there’s a whole other story happening behind closed doors. So I knew I wanted to do a first family story or a royal family story. And then I realized – if I had a member of the first family fall in love with a member of the royal family, I didn’t have to pick just one!"

Though her fictional Prince Henry is the younger brother of the heir, Prince Philip, actor Nicholas Galtizine didn't turn to the real-life royal spare, Prince Harry, when preparing to play Henry in the film.

"I feel like, especially in the last five years, Prince Harry and Prince William have been so in the public eye. Harry, especially being this kind of rogue amongst these very uptight, duty-bound royals, is maybe a comparison people will make," Galitzine told People. "But, to be honest, I feel like Henry almost has more of William in some sense. For a large part of the story, duty comes first. This responsibility that has been bestowed upon him since childhood comes first and he can't put his love, who he really is, before that."

Though Galitzine turned to William over Harry for inspiration, he added, "I wouldn't say I did too much research into one royal in particular."

In another interview, McQuiston told the Los Angeles Public Library's blog that though she wrote this royal romance novel, "I'm more of a casual fan of the royal family than you might think, but they have always been part of my pop culture landscape. I remember my sister having pictures of Prince William on her bedroom door in high school, and I definitely woke up at the crack of dawn to watch both royal weddings."

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