A pizza chain in New Zealand had their Halloween advertisement pulled for allegations of “bad taste”.
Hell’s Pizza, a chain of pizza available in New Zealand, featured an advert that showed dancing skeleton animations of the late Sir Edmund Hillary, Heath Ledger and the Queen Mother, with Michael Jackson’s hit ‘Thriller’ playing in the background.
The fast food chain apologized after family members of Edmund Hillary(pictured above) complained. A spokesperson said: “Clearly Hillary is revered in New Zealand and we all love him. The idea of Sir Ed being there was intended to be a light-hearted remembrance.”
Hillary’s son Peter told the Dominion Post: “I think it’s disturbing… a little grotesque.”
The firm’s marketing director Rachael Allison commented: “Interpretation of this is always up to individuals and we are always mindful of that and always keep an eye on our tone of voice and try to keep on top of that.”
Hell’s Pizza has caused done a few other things that may have spiked just a bit of controversy in the past, including passing out free condoms with its Lust pizzas and featuring Adolf Hitler doing a Nazi salute in a 2007 campaign.