Peloton trolled the new Sex and the City reboot on Sunday with a new commercial bringing back a beloved character who died in its first episode.
The reboot, titled And So, surprised fans Thursday by killing main character Carrie Bradshaw’s husband, Mr. Big. He was seen on the show riding his Peloton bike when he had a heart attack.
To get back on the show, Peloton launched a new ad, posted on Instagram Sunday night, opening in a fireplace before walking away to reveal Chris Noth, as Mr. Big sitting next to a woman on a couch and sipping wine.
‘To new beginnings’, he toasts the woman, who responds in the same way, before saying: ‘You look great.’
‘I feel great,’ says Mr. Big, before pointing to the corner with his eyes and asking the woman, ‘Do you want to take another walk? Life is too short, not too long.
The pair then laugh, as the frame expands to show two Peloton bikes behind them, while actor Ryan Reynolds does a voice-over, saying, ‘And so … the world was reminded that regular cycling stimulates and improves your heart, lungs, and circulation, thereby reducing your risk of cardiovascular disease.
“Cycling strengthens the heart muscles, lowers the pulse and reduces the levels of fat in the blood,” he continues, before simply saying: “He’s alive.”
Peloton launched a commercial on Sunday with Chris Noth reprising his role as Mr. Big.
In the commercial, he asks a woman if she wants to ride, before walking away to reveal two Peloton bikes behind them.
The character was killed in the premiere episode of the Sex and the City reboot, And Just Like That, on Thursday.
The ad ran just days after fans were devastated by the sudden death of Mr. Big.
The first episode of And Just Like That premiered Thursday, picking up where it left off from its three spinoff movies, with Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker; Miranda Hobbes, Cynthia Nixon; and Charlotte York, Kristin Davis; all coming back.
Other fan favorites from the hit HBO show, including Mr. Big, played by Chris Noth, were set to appear.
But only in the premiere episode, Mr. Big suffered a heart attack while riding his Peloton bike and died.
Many viewers were shocked by the news and took to social media to express their pain and outrage that Carrie did not call an ambulance when she found him lying on the ground.
‘Sorry WHHHHAAATTTTT Mr. Big dies like this… IN THE FIRST EPISODE F ***** !!!!! I didn’t see it coming, ‘wrote one Twitter user. Carrie could have called a fucking WTF ambulance !!!!! I’m so shocked right now. ‘
Another wrote that they were ‘stunned’ by his death and noted that after ’17 years of waiting to see what their life together would be like … did he die like this? And Carry don’t call the ambulance? Seriously?’
And a third simply wrote, ‘This is going to ruin a lot of people.’
Subsequently, Peloton shares fell 11 percent.
Noth was one of the names to reprise his role in the reboot, but series developer Michael Patrick King told him early on that they had planned to kill his character.
The death scene had featured Mr. Big (played by Chris Noth) at the Peleton talking to his favorite instructor, Allegra, during his exercise.
Mr. Big first appeared on the hit HBO show in 1998 and eventually married main character Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker.
The limited series And Just Like That is a continuation of HBO’s Sex and the City, with many of its lead actors returning for the reboot.
The company can now sue the show network over its product placement agreement, said intellectual property and entertainment attorney Nancy C. Prager.
He said that under the principle of nominative fair, production companies can use the product or its brand if it is being used for its intended purpose.
“However, nominative fair use does not apply when the protected mark is used in a way that disparages the mark or brand,” Prager told the New York Times.
Peleton had been portrayed in such a way as to be said to have “tarnished” the brand and what they stand for, as seen by the company’s stock plunge.
A representative for Peloton has since revealed that the company approved of instructor Jess King’s appearance on the show, but knew nothing about the plot, including Big’s disappearance from a heart attack.
“HBO acquired the Peloton Bike on its own,” Peloton spokesperson Denise Kelly told BuzzFeed, adding: “Peloton knew that a bicycle would be used in the episode and that Jess King would play a fictional Peloton instructor.”
And Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, a preventive cardiologist who serves as a member of Peloton’s health and wellness advisory council, told the Los Angeles Times: ” SATC ‘fans like me are saddened by the news that Mr. Big dies of a heart attack. ‘
‘Mr. Big lived what many would call an extravagant lifestyle, including cocktails, cigars, and big steaks, and he was taking a serious risk. [for a heart attack] as he had a previous cardiac event in season 6 ‘.
These lifestyle choices and perhaps even your family history, which is often a major factor, were the likely cause of your death.
Riding his Peloton bike may have even helped delay his heart event. ”
Several viewers took to Twitter to express their outrage at the character’s death.
With many fans still in shock, series developer Michael Patrick King revealed in a recent interview that the idea of killing Mr. Big so early was to give the show a new look, including doing the unexpected through the Carrie Bradshaw’s perspective.
‘Dying was the origin story,’ confessed King Vanity fair, adding: ‘Nobody wanted to go back if [the show] It wasn’t going to be any different. ‘
But with so much time invested in his character, considering he made his debut in 1998, Noth wanted to sit down with King to explain how Mr. Big’s death drives the story.
‘When I told Chris that Mr. Big dies in the first episode, he definitely knew it wasn’t [going to be the] same. And we had to talk about it, ‘confessed King.
“ I really wanted to talk about why he’s dying and what he’s doing for this series. The more we talked about it, the more he understood that it was for Carrie, and Carrie’s story is that it’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. ‘
Over time, King said, Noth came to understand that her death would open new doors to Carrie’s story, all while helping to build the mystic that has always surrounded Mr. Big since he made his way into her life late in the year. 1990s.
“The legacy of that character would not diminish, but his legend would increase as he left,” he explained.
‘If you can find someone who loves you, that’s great. But this really allows us to prove that thesis, the voiceover with which we ended the series in Sex in the City, that the most meaningful, challenging, difficult and rewarding relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. ‘
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