Why the Uber Eats Super Bowl âFriendsâ commercial is sparking outrage
A Super Bowl commercial for Uber Eats is causing controversy because of a joke it makes about peanut allergies.
The food delivery’s star-studded Super Bowl spot features Jennifer Aniston and a slate of celebrity cameos including Jelly Roll, Usher and Victoria and David Beckham. The theme of the commercial is forgetfulness. The cast remembers Uber Eats delivers, but they forget something else. David Beckham forgets Victoria Beckham was a Spice Girl. Usher forgets he’s this year’s Super Bowl halftime performer.
But a scene showing a man having a hive-filled reaction to peanut butter has viewers upset.
“There’s peanuts in peanut butter?” says the man, as he looks at the jar. “Oh, it’s the primary ingredient.”
Cleveland.com reports several viewers have filed a complaint about the segment.
Food Allergy Canada sent a letter to Uber Eats asking that the segment be edited out before it airs during Sunday’s game.
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“While the commercial alienates individuals with food allergy, the real harm is reducing the perception of its seriousness in the broader community and reinforcing that it’s OK to make fun of this potentially life-threatening condition,” the letter says. “The fact that this is a Super Bowl commercial with exponential reach makes this even more harmful, as research shows that depicting medical conditions in a comical way reduces its perceived seriousness.”
The nonprofit group Food Allergy and Research Education also released a statement condemning the commercial.
“… We were surprised and disappointed to see that Uber Eats would use the disease of life-threatening food allergy as humor in its new Super Bowl commercial,” the statement says. “The suffering of over 33 million Americans who live with life-threatening food allergy is no joke.”
So far, reports say Uber Eats has not responded to requests for comment on the statement.