A McDonald’s Holiday Ad Is Creeping People Out
A Mcdonald's restaurant is seen in Philadelphia on June 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
McDonald’s Netherlands has removed a new holiday commercial after it faced widespread criticism online. The 45-second spot, created with generative AI, attempted to portray the chaos of the season but instead drew negative reactions for its frantic visuals and gloomy tone.
The ad reimagined the classic holiday song “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” as “the most terrible time of the year,” showing a rapid series of stressful holiday moments—tumbling Christmas trees, burned cookies, kitchen disasters, and awkward family scenes—before suggesting that escaping to McDonald’s might be the solution.
Viewers quickly criticized the ad for its uncanny imagery, choppy editing, and flat, emotionless characters, calling it everything from “creepy” to “poorly executed.” Some were also put off by the message, accusing it of encouraging people to hide from their families during the holidays. After disabling comments on YouTube, McDonald’s eventually removed the video entirely, though copies continue to circulate on advertising archive sites.
McDonald’s Netherlands said the intent was to highlight the stressful side of the holidays, but admitted the response served as an important lesson in how AI should—and shouldn’t—be used in advertising.
The production company behind the spot defended the work, noting that a full team spent weeks refining the AI models and crafting each scene. Still, the ad has now joined a growing list of high-profile AI misfires, following other recent examples of big brands releasing AI-generated holiday content that many viewers found unsettling.
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