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Millie Bobby Brown's 'dangerous' Converse ad set to air following complaints
1 November 2018, 13:06
The commercial received complaints from parents when it was shared on YouTube.
Millie Bobby Brown's controversial Converse ad will still go ahead despite angering parents.
The Stranger Things actress nabbed the lucrative deal last year and can be seen travelling in the passenger seat of a car in the "offensive" clip. Millie discussed that time she killed it at the SAG Awards in January by rocking Converse with her gown on the red carpet. "You can't tell me how to be a girl," she tells the driver. Amen to that.
But Millie dared to put her new sneaks on the dashboard whilst the car was moving, obviously wanting to show them off, because c'mon this is all about the shoes. But the move received THREE complaints from livid parents โ oh, the outrage!
Some believed the move "condoned unsafe behaviour" which could be copied by innocent children. That led to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) stepping in to investigate under rules governing children plus harm and offence.
However, after a thorough look at the footage it was ruled that the advert did not breach any rules, so further action would be taken. Bosses of the footwear brand said the ad's message was clearly about trainers and not cars and wasn't aimed at children. Well, duh?
"We noted the ad depicted a teenager sitting in the front passenger seat of a moving car while telling her story to the driver, who was out of shot," an ASA spokesman stated. "We considered that was a common and recognisable setting that many viewers, including children, would be familiar with, and accordingly that it would be easy for them to emulate the scene depicted in the ad. We considered that Converse was a brand associated with youth culture, and that even for those who were not aware of her it was clear from her appearance and the context of her story that Millie Bobby Brown was a teenager and a celebrity.
"The theme of her story โ challenging social norms โ was something that we considered would appeal to people of all ages, and particularly to teenagers and young people. For those reasons we considered that while the ad was not targeted at children it was likely to resonate with teenagers as well as adults."
They continued: "We understood that it could be dangerous for car passengers to place their feet on the dashboard of a moving vehicle, particularly as it could interfere with the proper operation of an air-bag in case of emergency.
"However, the angle of the shot drew attention to her face and the story she was telling, and we considered viewers would understand that her foot was raised in order to ensure the trainers featured prominently in the ad. The way she was sitting was not otherwise relevant to the product being advertised or the story being told, and we considered viewers were therefore likely to pay little attention to the way she was sitting. For that reason, we concluded the ad did not condone or encourage an unsafe practice."