Wrecking Ball, a new commercial for Gillette's Right Guard deodorant, has been pulled from air in the UK after a series of complaints to the Independent Television Commission.
The ad, which shows a man desperately trying to escape from a collapsing building, has caused "significant offence" according to the ITC, which received 159 complaints from viewers reminded of the World Trade Center disaster.
Created by Abbott Mead Vickers.BBDO in London, the spot depicts an office worker and Right Guard user, who is unwittingly having the strength of his deodorant tested by a news crew outside. As the building is destroyed, the man runs down dust-filled stairwells to escape the building, only to be grabbed by a newsreader who takes a deep sniff of his armpits and is suitably impressed by Right Guard's 'all day protection'.
The spot was directed by Happy through Arden Sutherland Dodd, London. Earlier this year Happy hit the headlines after their Wrigley's commercial, Dog Breath, in which a painfully hungover man vomits a dog onto his living room rug, was pulled after a record-breaking number of complaints to the ITC. Although the controversy surrounding this second ban is trickier for everyone involved given the ongoing sensitivity towards anything reminiscent of 9/11, it has to be said that a badly-executed film never offends anyone.
Due to the delicate nature of the issue, Abbott Mead Vickers.BBDO and production company Arden SutherlandDodd are unsurprisingly keeping schtum on the matter, although Gillette, makers of Right Guard, has announced their acceptance of the ban.
The spot can be seen on shots #79 reel, out next week.
