Meghan Markle and Chrissy Teigen look back on ‘Deal or No Deal’ 20 years later

Meghan Markle and Chrissy Teigen reunited on Netflix’s With Love, Meghan to reflect on their Deal or No Deal modeling days.

Before achieving fame on reality TV, magazine covers, and royal titles, both women did what many young performers do: take the available work. Meghan called their Deal or No Deal days “a past life,” and the episode frames the reunion as both a time capsule and a checkpoint on how far they’ve traveled.

Meghan worked on the show in 2006–2007 and is regularly counted among the briefcase models fans still remember; NBC’s archives confirm Markle stood beside briefcase number 24 and appears in several season-two episodes.

That work mattered in practical ways, Markle pointed out, noting the stability that things like health insurance brought during audition-heavy years, and in awkward, formative ways. For many performers who do small TV gigs, the balance of gratitude and vulnerability is real: you’re thankful for the paycheck, yet aware that those roles don’t define your full skill set.

Sometimes the smallest jobs leave the biggest lessons.

The gross eyelash anecdote

Beauty rituals can be glamorous or weirdly communal.

The moment that went viral from their reunion wasn’t a wardrobe win or a behind-the-scenes career tip; it was the eyelash Ziploc. Chrissy Teigen laughed as she remembered leaving the stage, finding “a Ziploc bag” where models dumped used false lashes, and grabbing them like some shared backstage potluck.

Meghan chimed in with equal parts amusement and disgust. The image, models pooling and reusing fake eyelashes, reads like a relic from a different era of low-budget production care. That anecdote does two things: it humanizes these now-household names, and it underlines the reality many aspiring performers face: small crews, tight budgets, and improvisational backstage practices.

Nothing kills the illusion of glamour faster than a shared Ziploc bag.

How often were they actually there

Fame is a messy mosaic; small moments can stick forever.

Meghan’s stint on Deal or No Deal is not a myth. Production and press records show Markle appeared in season-two episodes in 2006–2007 (her briefcase was regularly #24), and retrospective pieces often mention her multi-episode presence.

Some outlets cite a specific episode tally for Meghan; while counts vary slightly in reporting, reliable sources agree she was a recurring model during that season. Chrissy Teigen’s time is more limited; she’s commonly described as “backup” or appearing in a pilot or a smaller number of episodes before moving on to modeling and eventually a Sports Illustrated breakthrough.

Why does this matter? Because it reframes “briefcase model” from a throwaway credit into a meaningful early-career role: time on a network show, however short, can open doors, build confidence, and feed resumes. The two women’s trajectories diverged, Meghan into acting and later royal life, and Teigen into modeling and media, but that shared starting point provides an honest connective tissue.

Even brief appearances can leave a permanent mark on pop culture memory.

What the reunion reveals about growth

A single gig can look different with time and perspective.

Reunions like this work as two mirrors: you see the person you were, and the person you became. Both women reflected on how odd those days felt and how useful they were. Meghan’s gratitude about the practical benefits (health insurance, steady appearances) sits alongside a frank admission about feeling “not smart” in that context, a pointed comment about how appearance-focused roles sometimes strip away professional identity.

Teigen’s jokey “backup girl” remark contains a competitive subtext; she left the show and soon had a breakout modeling career. The emotional throughline is hope and perspective. Both women now have public platforms big enough to revisit and laugh at those early trials and to call out the strange micro-rituals that shaped them.

Looking back shows that struggle isn’t wasted, it’s groundwork.

Why the story resonated

We love origin stories, especially the messy ones.

This clip spread because it’s relatable and mildly scandalous in a domestic way. Americans especially gravitate toward origin tales, the humble start, the awkward backstage ritual, the later glow of success.

A former briefcase model and a future/then-current influencer sharing a gross but funny anecdote is a neat, shareable shorthand for “we all start somewhere.” The conversation also fits cultural appetite for redemption narratives and candid celebrity talk; audiences want the human detail, not just the highlight reel.

It’s not just nostalgia; it’s also a corrective. That Ziploc story punctures the myth of glamour. It tells current and future creatives that early career conditions can be uncomfortable, improvisational, and sometimes ethically questionable, and it’s okay to leave and build something different from that starting point.

We’re drawn to the unpolished beginnings that make success feel real.

The takeaway; memory and fame

Those low-budget moments often become the stories we tell at dinner parties.

If there’s a final lesson, it’s human: careers are messy journeys of micro-moments. The briefcase days weren’t destiny for Meghan or Chrissy; they were a chapter. Both women used the reunion to laugh, to reflect, and to honor the messy truth that early work often asks us to compromise while we find our voice.

That honesty is what makes the clip less like celebrity theater and more like a cautionary and hopeful parable for anyone chasing creative work.

Early hustle might feel forgettable, but it often becomes the best story you’ll ever tell.

TL;DR

• Meghan Markle and Chrissy Teigen reunited on Netflix’s With Love, Meghan to reflect on their Deal or No Deal modeling days.
• Meghan described the experience as a “past life” that gave her practical benefits like health insurance during early acting struggles.
• Meghan appeared in multiple season-two episodes (2006–2007) as briefcase model #24, while Chrissy was more of a backup with fewer appearances.
• Chrissy joked about Meghan’s rise, while she herself went on to a Sports Illustrated breakthrough soon after leaving the show.
• Both women acknowledged feeling objectified at times but also grateful for the stepping stone it provided.
• The reunion resonated because it humanized two major celebrities with relatable, messy beginnings.
• Their conversation showed how small, humble jobs can transform into meaningful chapters of bigger success stories.

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This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.