Jo Malone Apologizes To John Boyega For Erasing Him From Ad He Made & Starred In
Image via DFree / Shutterstock.com
Perfume brand Jo Malone London has apologized to actor John Boyega after an advert he had produced for the company was reshot without him for the Chinese market.
Boyega was announced as the brand’s first male global ambassador. He shot an advert for the company, which featured his friends and family in his diverse hometown of Peckham, London.
Unfortunately, the Chinese reshoot replaced Boyega with a Chinese actor, Liu Haoran. Boyega’s friends and family were all replaced too, which means there was not a single Black individual in the ad.
In a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter, Jo Malone said, “We deeply apologize for what, on our end, was a mistake in the local execution of the John Boyega campaign. John is a tremendous artist with great personal direction. The concept for the film was based on John’s personal experiences and should not have been replicated.”
The original ad, titled A London Gent, revolved around Boyega’s Peckham roots and showed him enjoying time with his loved ones. The reshoot reused the entire concept without Boyega’s knowledge, per The Hollywood Reporter. Both clips saw the main character hanging out with friends and family and starts with the ad zooming into the central character’s eyes.
Boyega has announced that he will be departing from his position as brand ambassador.
In a tweet, he said, “I have decided to step down as Jo Malone’s global ambassador. “When I joined the brand as their first male global ambassador last year, I created the short film we used to launch the campaign. It won the Fragrance Foundation Virtual awards 2020 for Best Media Campaign.”
Crazy racism from Jo Malone. Not only did they replace @JohnBoyega, they ripped off his creative ideas and reshot his original film virtually shot-for-shot for the Chinese market.
— Phantom Power (@PhantomPower14) September 14, 2020
Edit: Original left - Racist right. pic.twitter.com/AgHd9B4q7E
I have decided to step down as Jo Malone's global ambassador. When I joined the brand as their first male global ambassador last year, I created the short film we used to launch the campaign. It won the Fragrance Foundation Virtual awards 2020 for Best Media Campaign.
— John Boyega (@JohnBoyega) September 14, 2020
While many brands understandably use a variety of global and local ambassadors , dismissively trading out one’s culture this way is not something I can condone.
— John Boyega (@JohnBoyega) September 14, 2020
I’m actually disgusted at this whole John Boyega reshoot. If we’re being honest the rip off doesn’t even bang like his! Nahh watch them side by side please. Jo Malone need to do more than apologise. That is theft.
— OLONI BABY (@Oloni) September 14, 2020
[via Variety, cover image via DFree / Shutterstock.com]
