After Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's interview, young Americans won't view the monarchy the same way again

• Harry and Meghan's Oprah interview was many young Americans' first impression of the monarchy.
• The couple's "lockdown" analogy and openness on mental health struck a chord with young viewers.
• Like Princess Diana's interview, it's left people choosing a side: the palace or the Sussexes.

As Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's no-subjects-off-limits interview with Oprah Winfrey unfolded Sunday in the US, more than 17 million Americans heard from the former royal couple about what they say their life was like behind palace doors.

According to Nielsen, their interview was most popular with US audiences between the ages of 18 and 54, part of which includes young millennials and Gen Z viewers.

In the interview, Markle said that as a senior royal, she was "silenced" by the palace, and that she didn't want to be alive anymore but was denied mental-health support.

She and Harry also said that unnamed senior royals (who Winfrey later said, per Harry, were neither the Queen nor Prince Philip) expressed "concerns" about Archie's skin tone before he was born.

For many young American millennials and Gen Zers, Markle and Harry's conversation with Winfrey was their first glimpse at modern royals and the apparent values of the British monarchy - and it's likely to shape their perceptions of the royal family for years to come.

Harry and Markle left viewers taking sides - much like Princess Diana's interview

The impact of Harry and Markle's interview mirrors the way Princess Diana's 1995 BBC "Panorama" TV segment changed public perception of the palace, according to Arianne Chernock, an associate professor at Boston University who focuses on modern British and European history and the monarchy.

Princess Diana, who had then separated from Prince Charles and distanced herself from the royal family, famously told journalist Martin Bashir: "Well, there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded."

Other royals had previously hinted at negative experiences - including Princess Margaret, who suffered depression throughout her lifetime, and King Edward VIII, who chose to abdicate the throne to marry his love, Wallis Simpson, a divorced American socialite.

But much like the revelations Harry and Meghan shared in their interview, Diana gave a raw look at her reality as a royal, and it wasn't good for perceptions of the palace.

"Diana's interview did really shape public perception for the worse for the monarchy. In her interview, we found out just how fraught relationships in the royal family were in the '90s," Chernock told Insider. "There had been glimpses before of cracks, but Diana really took that to a whole new level and provided so much more detail, clarity, and pain in her narrative."

Chernock said that after Diana's interview, "you couldn't be rooting both for Diana and for the palace - you had to choose a side."

"Likewise, it's hard right now to imagine a way to support both Harry and Meghan and the palace," she said.

Harry and Markle's interview could be the final straw for royal fans

Chernock said that until recent years, the British monarchy was widely viewed as "incredibly popular."

But younger, American viewers of Harry and Markle's interview may not remember a time when the royal family was especially favorable considering its recent scandals.

For example, prior to Harry and Markle's bombshell interview with Winfrey, the royal family's image was tinged by Prince Andrew's 2019 interview on BBC "Newsnight." In the segment, Andrew downplayed his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and claimed that a widely circulated photo taken of him with his hand around the waist of Virginia Roberts Giuffre was fake.

Four days after his disastrous interview, Andrew stepped down from his duties as the Duke of York and said he would comply with law enforcement agency investigations.

But more than a year later, the palace is still seemingly protecting him. Andrew's situation, coupled with the concerning experiences Harry and Markle shared, could give skeptics of the monarchy reason to stop supporting the institution altogether.

Markle and Harry touched on causes that resonate with younger viewers

Younger-aged Americans were likely to connect with key parts of Harry and Markle's story from the interview, Chernock said.

For example, Markle made an analogy comparing the loneliness she experienced in her life as a royal to living under quarantine.

"I think the easiest way that now people can understand it is what we've all gone through in lockdown," Markle said.

Markle's "lockdown" comparison will likely strike a chord even years from now with viewers whose formative years were during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Younger millennials and Gen Z viewers may also feel inclined to support Harry and Markle after the interview because of the openness in which the couple discussed their mental health - a cause people in those generations have championed, Chernock said.

"I think we got a glimpse Sunday of Harry and Meghan's continuing commitment to this," she said.

But even if young Americans now feel especially connected to the couple, they're still expecting the palace to address what was said in the interview, including the couple's claims of being denied mental-health support and being treated differently because of Markle's race.

All eyes are on the royal family's response to the interview

Markle and Harry's allegations of colorism in the royal family may not come as a surprise to those who are familiar with the monarchy's historic ties to racism. However, the way the royal family responds will make or break younger generations' perceptions of the monarchy moving forward.

On Tuesday, Buckingham Palace broke its silence after Harry and Markle's interview aired.

In a statement on behalf of the Queen, the palace said: "The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan."

It continued: "The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately. Harry, Meghan, and Archie will always be much loved family members."

Chernock said she hopes the statement is just a start.

"I hope they take advantage of the opportunity," she said. "Yes, people make mistakes, but now they can show how you reestablish relationships and improve the world in which you live."

After all, it's not often that a centuries-old institution gets a chance to rebrand itself.

Whether or not the royal family puts its money where its mouth is in response to Harry and Markle's story will certainly play a role in what today's young adults think of the monarchy years down the line.

Buckingham Palace did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment on this story.