William and Kate's friends 'sickened' by depiction of royal couple in Harry and Meghan's Netflix trailer

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Speaking to the Daily Mail, Richard said that the Sussexes, who are now based in Montecito, California, had tried to "upstage" the Prince and Princess of Wales, who are currently touring the US ahead of William's Earthshot Prize reception on Friday, December 2. "I was appalled when I watched this trailer, frankly. It's everything we feared, it really is," Richard told the outlet. "I've heard from friends of Prince William and Catherine today, and they've been frankly sickened by what's appeared in this video. The use of William and Catherine and the image and the way it's presented, my goodness."

The royal expert said he was particularly miffed by the juxtaposition of footage of Meghan crying, and a picture of a "stony-faced, stern image of Catherine at Westminster" that was captured on Commonwealth Day in March 2020. "Remember, this is a service that Omid Scobie, Meghan's cheerleader, wrote about," Richard continued. "He said that Harry and Meghan had been left disappointed that William and Catherine had refused to make even eye contact with them that day and this seems to be referring to that."

Richard said friends of William and Kate had pointed out that the team behind the Netflix show appeared "to have gone to great lengths to find the one unflattering image of Catherine for this trailer." He went on, "I mean come on. Meghan is meant to have given up acting but she seems to be back acting again for this reality show or documentary series. We don't just see her in tears at one point. That's not enough: not one single tear dripping down her cheek. No, no, she has to tub her face to emphasize these tears. This could be an Oscar-winning performance."

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Richard also offered his two cents on the timing of the trailer's release, which clashes with William and Kate's visit to Boston. "The timing of this trailer could hardly be worse," he said. "We've got William and Catherine going on their big American visit. They've got the ceremony for the Earthshot Prize on Friday. And the day before comes this curtain raiser, which of course will attract huge interest and be watched around the world."

The journalist insisted that the release date wasn't a mere coincidence. "It's a deliberate attempt to upstage [Kate and William] and the use of their images in it really rams that point home, you know. This documentary series is meant to be about Harry and Meghan. Yet, they're featuring William and Catherine in the one-minute trailer," Richard said. "I think the royal family will be waiting nervously to see what's in it next week, you know. The trailer is deliberately meant to whet the appetite of the public and that's what it's doing and they're certainly hinting at, you know, a lot of controversy, a lot of scandal. It's 'see behind closed doors,' that's what they are emphasizing in this trailer. I think there's going to be a lot of nerves in the palaces this evening," he added.