SNL goes behind the scenes of that Kendall Jenner Pepsi ad to show how far it 'missed the mark'
Last week’s big story was the implosion of a global Pepsi campaign featuring Kendall Jenner after complaints accused it of appropriating numerous movements – including Black Lives Matter. It made for a perfect parody, duly delivered by the Saturday Night Live (SNL) team just days later.
Pepsi, on its infamous in-house produced ad, said the work “takes a more progressive approach to truly reflect today's generation and what living for now looks like.” However, very quickly it was offering an apology, after an immediate backlash upon it's launch last Wednesday. The company admitted in an understated statement that it had “missed the mark”.
“How did this get made?” was a common question arising from the ad (check out the social sentiments towards it here), SNL decided to take viewers behind the scenes to give insight into the director’s state of mind.
Beck Bennett and Cecily Strong portray the director and Kendall Jenner respectively. It documents how the director slowly realises his prized idea might not be as well received as he might have hoped.
A final moment of realisation occurs in a phone call: "Ah huh. Tone deaf? We're just using them ... to sell soda?"