Rami Malek says Kate Middleton was 'taken aback' by his baby question

Kate Middleton, like her fellow senior royals, poses for the media soon after she welcomes a baby, and returns to working engagements immediately after a maternity leave of six months. She was representing the British royal family on one such visit when actor Rami Malek shocked her by asking how she was coping with work after her pregnancy.

The incident happened during the BAFTA Awards on February 11, 2019. Recalling his conversation with the British royal during a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Malek said, "I just looked at Princess Kate at one point and I said, 'This must be exhausting.' And she said, 'Why?' And I said, 'You just had a baby, right?'"

The award ceremony was held over nine months after the Duke and the Duchess of Cambridge welcomed their third child Prince Louis, now 3-years-old. Malek recalled that he had caught Kate by surprise with his question.

"She was taken aback, and she said, 'How are you doing?' And I said, 'How are you?' And in the most regal, elegant way she gave me a look, but you can tell. Imagine [being] dressed to the nines, having to talk to all these actors," the "Bohemian Rhapsody" star revealed.

During their chat, the 40-year-old actor even offered to babysit Louis and her other two children- Prince George, 8, and Princess Charlotte, 6. He recalled, "I said, 'You know, if you ever need time off, I'm backup for you.' She's like, 'What do you mean?' I said, 'You guys go out, have a good time.'"

The actor thought it was "so cool" to catch the royal "off-guard for a second" as she is always calm and composed in public, "so careful" in Malek's words. "(She) had that look of, in the most elegant, professional, royal way, (and said), 'Yes, it's a lot having a kid,'" he told Kimmel.

Malek recently met with Kate again when she attended the premiere of "No Time To Die," in which the actor plays 007's latest nemesis- a vengeful killer named Safin who operates deviously from his island lair. Malek sat behind her and Prince William at the premiere, and came to the conclusion that the future monarch couple "loved" the movie.