Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds has become the latest person to have a dig at the now notorious Peloton TV advertisement. A new promo for his gin features the actress who plays ‘Peloton Wife’ drinking solemnly with friends and toasting ‘new beginnings’. “You’re safe here,” says one of them.
Peloton’s ad features a husband buying his slim wife one of the firm’s exercise bikes for Christmas. Utterly bizarrely – and more than a little unsettlingly – she then shoots videos for him, documenting her ‘life-changing’ progress.
The ad has been widely criticised for sexism and for reinforcing body stereotypes. It has also provided rich material for satire as a result of the woman’s seemingly terrified facial expression throughout.
The advert for Aviation Gin plays on these things by implying that it features the same character.
Reynolds tweeted the video by saying ‘Exercise bike not included’.
“You look great, by the way,” says one of the friends at the end.
The huge negative response to the Peloton ad saw $1bn knocked off the indoor bike and treadmill business’s market value in just 48 hours.
Sean Hunter, the actor who played ‘Peloton Husband’, says he has also endured a backlash.
“My five seconds of air time created an array of malicious feedback that is all associated with my face,” he told Psychology Today. “My friend texted me today declaring that I’m ‘a symbol of the patriarchy.’”
Hunter also works as a teacher in Vancouver.
“As my face continues to be screen shot online, I wonder what repercussions will come back to me,” he said. “I pride myself on being a great teacher and developing actor, and I can only hope that this affects neither.”
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I see the actor portraying the husband is so distraught at the backlash, at being made a symbol of the patriarchy, and of the potential impact on his dual careers, that he's changed his Instagram handle to "pelotonhusband" in order to distance himself from it all as effectively as he can.
I did once buy my better half, for an anniversary, a le crueset frying pan. She loved it. Mentioned it to a lady at work, who said that if her husband had brought her that he'd be hit with it, and those things are heavy. For me it was showing that we were in it for the long haul. Tell you the truth, I don't know if she ever used it, I now do all of the cooking (and baking). I use it to cook sausages, it does them lovely. Butchers ones though, slightly thicker skins. Did once try using lard instead of olive oil, a bit too good.
Made crumpets on it yesterday.
HP, temporary avatar?
A fine choice though.
Nothing abides.
SquirrelPool in honour of Ryan Reynolds' master trolling.
If I buy my wife some make-up am I saying she is ugly, a hairdryer that her hair looks crap, some new clothes because I think her normal clothes look bad, what if I bought her a nice shiny new Road Bike, is that also sexist and I'm saying she isn't fit and needs some exercise, seriously this is going too far, how about this... a young professional mother has hinted to her husband that she would love a Peloton bike for Christmas as it fits her executive lifestyle perfectly, we could turn any present into something bad.
Anyway... I'm off shopping, noticed the pans in the kitchen are old and it's getting hard for the wife to cook my dinner, can't wait for the look on her face Christmas morning opening the big box with some shiny new pans in.
PS: I genuinely did buy my wife a kitchen knife one year for Christmas, she loved it, she is a chef and wanted it.
Surely sir, your wife is a cook. It is, after all, a universally held truth that only men can be chefs
Brilliant!!
(and only works so well, if you've seen the Peloton ad)
Noice!
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