Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Have a 'Golden Opportunity' to Reconcile With the Royal Family After Kate Middleton’s Botched Photo Scandal

Kate Middleton is a beloved figure within the royal family, but the Princess of Wales is at the center of controversy after returning to social media using a poorly altered photo amid her health crisis.

Although Kate and Meghan Markle struggled to bond in the past, PR expert Ryan McCormick thinks the shift in the public's treatment of Kate will help the dueling duchesses reconcile.

"Meghan and Harry now have a golden opportunity to not only accelerate healing their riff with the royal family but to restore some of their likability in the eyes of the public," McCormick told an outlet. "If I was advising Meghan, I would tell her to speak loud and passionate in defense of Kate."

After leaving the U.K., Meghan alluded to the British press attacking her while writing positive stories about her sister-in-law, but in recent weeks, Kate has been on the receiving end of scrutiny.

"Meghan may not like being on the brunt of negative press but, she's definitely more familiar with it than Kate," the commentator added. "The Duchess could help the Princess of Wales tremendously by guiding her through this crisis publicly and behind the scenes."

The viral snapshot ultimately threatened the integrity of The Crown.

"The controversy surrounding Kate Middleton's Mother's Day photo has now become a full-blown PR crisis," McCormick said.

"Some sites have listed up to 18 noticeable edits including a missing wedding ring," he added. "The only thing I haven't seen yet is evidence of Kate's face and skin complexion being changed (which could imply a coverup to the true nature of her health). Whomever released the image may want to consider another career."

OK! previously reported anti-monarchist Graham Smith thinks The Firm's response to Kate's mishap shows the lack of concern for civilians' opinions.

“Kate’s statement answers no questions. We can all see the photo has been edited,” Smith told an outlet. "The question is why? Why haven’t they released the original photo? A statement parsed via the press office of Prince William which says nothing and explains nothing shows a general disregard for the public."

Michael Cole shared that The Firm's approach to the princess' mistake is only making people distrust Kate and William more.

“Kensington Palace must now come up with a full and plausible explanation of how and why this cack-handed attempt at media manipulation came about,” Cole explained. “Otherwise, there is a danger of permanent damage to the credibility of the royal family.”

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Kate took accountability for her botched snapshot on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C,” she wrote.

McCormick spoke to The Mirror.