'Shocked and Embarrassed': Prince William and Kate Middleton Are Upset by Holiday Card Photoshop Error

Catherine, Princess of Wales and Prince William are just as "shocked" by the reaction to their 2023 Christmas card as those criticizing it on social media are. The future king and queen are said to be "embarrassed" by claims that the monochrome image was "heavily edited" or auto-generated by AI, a source close to the couple shared.

In the photo, which also features their three children, Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte and Prince George, there seems to be issues with how William and Louis were photographed. This includes the fourth in line to the throne looking as if he is missing his middle finger on his left hand and the Prince of Wales seemingly "missing a leg." Social media users were quick to comment on the anomalies.

"Just saw @extratv report on Prince Louis’ 'missing finger' being the worst photoshop ever. How embarrassing and gross for them to report on this. Do better," one defender of the image claimed, while another shared, "I've never heard of anything so stupid. His thumb is hidden."

Someone else pointed out: "Where is Willy's bottom half? Consider the angle of his supposed right leg, his left leg should be visible in the chair opening unless he's trying to do a split?"

All of these problems are easily explainable, as closer inspection reveals that Louis' left thumb is tucked under the armrest, which creates a wider space in the middle of his hand. The Prince and Princess of Wales have not publicly commented on the suspicion surrounding the card.

The pair unveiled the image on their Instagram on Saturday, December 9, one day after the future queen's successful "Together at Christmas" concert. The entire royal family is also preparing for the annual trek to Sandringham House in Norfolk to spend Christmas and ring in the new year with King Charles III and Queen Camilla.

The King and Queen also released their official holiday card recently, which is an image of the duo at Buckingham Palace taken on the day of their coronation on May 6. The monarch and consort are in their full state regalia, and both are wearing the Imperial State Crown and Queen Mary's Crown, respectively.

This follows a troubling past two weeks for the King and the Princess of Wales, as both were named as two royals who allegedly questioned Prince Archie's skin color in 2019. This was revealed as a "translation error" in the Dutch edition of Sussex biographer Omid Scobie's Endgame. Neither has commented on the accusations, nor have Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, which has drawn criticism due to Meghan's past associations with Scobie.

Us Weekly spoke with the royal insider.