Kendall Jenner’s Pepsi commercial, which was reportedly shot on Bangkok’s Wireless Road in February, launched on Monday and — thanks to the Jenner sister — the internet came together and agreed to hate it.
Pepsi has been widely slammed for the two-minute commercial, which the company said was about “the moments we decide to let go, choose to act, and follow our passion,” but several international media reports suggested that the finale of the cringe-worthy clip bears too much resemblance to an iconic photograph taken at a Black Lives Matter protest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in July 2016. The demonstration took place days after a black man, Alton Sterling, was shot several times at close range while held down on the ground by two white cops.
Meanwhile, the Pepsi video shows socialite Kendall Jenner, posing for a high-fashion photoshoot in Bangkok. As the protesters (it is unclear what they’re protesting about) pass Jenner with placards that read “Join the conversation” and “Love,” she boldly takes off her blonde wig, wipes off her heavy makeup and joins the movement. Whatever it’s all about.
In the finale, Jenner walks over to a cop with a disapproving look on his face. She hands him a Pepsi. He drinks it as a photographer captures the perfect moment. The crowd cheers, and the officer looks at his buddy cop as if all disputes are settled with the can of soda.
The commercial ends with the slogan “Live bolder. Live louder. Live for now.”
Twitter is enraged and many Americans criticized Pepsi for being “tone deaf.” Many responded with mockery, saying that if Jenner was black, she would have been pepper-sprayed.
https://twitter.com/br_crowbot/status/849438344585105408
https://twitter.com/apurposefulwife/status/849456732447416321
Back in Thailand, people are still excited about how THE Kendall Jenner set foot in Bangkok. Vogue Thailand did a story on how Jenner wanted to follow the path of Cindy Crawford, who also shot a commercial for Pepsi. Behind-the-scenes photos of the commercial are going viral on Thai Facebook with positive feedback.
The video shows about two seconds of the Bangkok skyline. Without it, the commercial looks like it could be shot anywhere and we can’t actually recognize any of the streets or locations. We wonder what message Pepsi is trying to send by choosing Bangkok as the set without featuring any of its glory?
Editor’s Note: Pepsi pulled down the video following criticism. Coconuts has replaced the video with a repost.
