McDonald’s has withdrawn an AI-generated Christmas commercial in the Netherlands after a wave of criticism on social media accused the fast-food chain of killing festive cheer.
The spot, titled ‘The most terrible time of the year’, showed a chaotic version of the holidays: a traffic jam trapping Santa, a Dutch cyclist overloaded with presents slipping in the snow, and a general sense of seasonal stress. The punchline: escape the madness by hiding out in a McDonald’s restaurant until January.
Instead of laughs, the campaign triggered anger and ridicule online. Some users complained that the ad soured the festive mood, with one saying it had ‘ruined’ their Christmas spirit, while others dismissed it as low-quality ‘AI slop’.
In a statement, McDonald’s Netherlands said the campaign was meant to highlight ‘stressful moments during the holidays’ in the country. The company acknowledged that the public response showed something different: for many customers, this period is still ‘the most wonderful time of the year’. On that basis, the chain confirmed it had decided to remove the commercial.
The ad was produced by Sweetshop Films, whose chief executive, Melanie Bridge, defended the use of generative AI in a LinkedIn post. She argued that AI should be seen as an extension of the creative toolkit rather than a replacement for human craft, stressing that direction, taste and leadership ‘will always be human’.
Bridge also said the production had been far from effortless, noting that a team of 10 people worked full-time for five weeks on the project more, she claimed, than a traditional shoot would typically require.
That defence sparked a fresh round of debate. Emlyn Davies of independent production company Bomper Studio responded by questioning the impact on traditional jobs, asking what had happened to the actors, choirs and other professionals who might have taken part in a live-action version.
The controversy comes as major brands experiment more openly with AI-generated imagery in their marketing and face growing scrutiny as they do so. Coca-Cola has also released a new AI-powered holiday commercial this season, following criticism of a similar campaign last year. Its latest spot leans heavily on computer-generated winter animals and largely steers clear of close-up human characters, an apparent attempt to avoid the uncanny or unsettling look that often draws backlash online.
For McDonald’s Netherlands, the message from customers appears to be clear: when it comes to Christmas, many viewers still prefer warmth over digital cynicism.
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