Pepsi-Kendall Jenner Ad: Why The Soda Company Pulled The Commercial Amid Backlash

Pepsi has decided to pull their controversial political ad starring Kendall Jenner. The soda company proudly debuted the commercial on Tuesday and received backlash online.

A day later, Pepsi released a statement announcing their decision to pull the ad. The beverage company maintained that their intentions were good, explaining their initial concept. Pepsi claimed it was never their intention to “make light” of political problems, apologizing to Jenner, 21.

The ad showed the model on a photoshoot set. As the photographer tries to get his shot, a protest wages through the streets. Jenner is drawn to the signs, ditching her glamorous gig after locking eyes with an attractive guy in the crowd.

She marches toward a line of police with a crowd holding signs. As they get closer to the police, Jenner gets ahold of a Pepsi and makes her move. She steps toward the officers, handing one of them the drink — with that, she’s able to achieve peace between the group and the authorities.

The moment between Kendall and the officer who accepts the drink seemingly mimics a famous Black Lives Matter protest image. The iconic photo from July 2016 shows Ieshia Evans confronting police in riot gear during a demonstration in response to the death of Alton Sterling. She stands tall as they prepare to detain her.

Twitter users were quick to mock Pepsi’s ad. Some photoshopped cans of the fizzy soft drink into photos from historic moments. Others called on the company to hire more black employees, suggesting this flub could have been avoided.

Meanwhile, the Kardashians reveled in Jenner’s big moment. Her mother/manager Kris Jenner celebrated the ad on Twitter, congratulating her daughter. Jenner herself shared the video with followers.

Neither addressed the controversy surrounding the ad.