Donald Trump's Makeup Mocked in Court Photo—'Looks Really Fake'

A photo of former U.S. President Donald Trump in court has been mocked on social media over what appears to be an uneven application of makeup or fake tan.

The 2024 presidential hopeful has in recent weeks been locked in an ongoing $250 million civil fraud trial, in which he and his Trump Organization stand accused of having given misleading valuations for property they own to secure more favorable bank loans and tax arrangements.

In September, Judge Arthur Engoron ruled that Trump, his adult sons and the Trump Organization had committed fraud. Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, branding the case against him a "witch hunt."

Engoron is currently deliberating on six other accusations, including falsifying business records and insurance fraud. As the case is civil, there is no prospect of Trump, or anyone else involved, being sentenced to prison.

On Thursday—the day that Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., took to the stand to testify in the trial—a photo of the Republican frontrunner inside the New York State Supreme Court sparked a wave of derision on X, formerly Twitter.

The image, which appears to have been taken on October 17, shows Trump, 77, sporting a deeply tanned complexion on most of his face, although there are notably lighter patches near his hairline, around his ear and on the side of his neck.

Author Majid M. Padellan shared the photo, with the caption: "Many people are saying that [Trump] HATES this hideous picture of himself, so whatever you do, please don't share it. Think of all the splattered ketchup. YIKES."

"He missed his neck and in front of his [ear]," one X user commented of Trump. "Does he do his own makeup?"

"That looks really fake," another said of the image.

"Trump team attacking [Ron] DeSantis for wearing lifts in his boots, meanwhile Donald Trump is running around in bad makeup," quipped another.

"When grifting doesn't pay your makeup artist so Melania [Trump] does it for you," another joked in response to the image.

Another referred to viral footage of Trump's former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani from 2020, suggesting that the former president "ran out of orange makeup so he borrowed some of Rudy's hair dye to rub all over his [...] face."

Amid the wave of derision, a number of Trump supporters spoke up in his defense. One shared a Trump hashtag, in apparent support of his 2024 presidential run.

One used the discussion as an opportunity to compare life under Trump to life in the U.S. with Joe Biden in the White House.

"Gas prices in my area under President Trump $1.50 .....under [Biden], it's $ 3.50 per gallon," they wrote.

Newsweek has contacted representatives of Trump via email for comment.

While Trump's rich coloring has been a talking point over the years, he also attracted attention in 2022 when he was photographed without makeup or fake tan. A number of social media users remarked on the dramatic difference in his appearance.

In February 2020, a photo of Trump in which his fake tan line was clearly visible around his hairline and neck circulated online.

The photo appeared to have been taken while Trump was walking on the South Lawn of the White House on February 7, 2020, with other photos showing Trump's face in two different shades available at picture agencies.

Trump declared the photo to be "fake news."

"This was photoshopped, obviously, but the wind was strong and the hair looks good? Anything to demean!" Trump wrote on X at the time.