![Toy Company Mattel Apologizes For Putting A Link To An Adult Website On A Children’s Doll]()
![Wicked dolls]()
How in the hell does that even happen?
The 2024 election just wrapped up, but a big theme from throughout the campaign was protecting children. Given the arrest of several high-profile (alleged) sexual predators in the past few years like Jeffrey Epstein, R. Kelly and rapper Diddy, it's no wonder that many are skeptical of the rich and famous when it comes to their intentions with children.
And this latest move from Mattel isn't doing anything to help them beat the allegations.
Over the past few days, several users on social media pointed out that a link on the packaging for dolls from the upcoming movie
Wicked actually contain a link to a pornography website instead.
https://twitter.com/Stuntman_Mik3/status/1855463945105985806
https://twitter.com/just2goodYT/status/1855382617085878447
The movie, which comes out in theaters on November 22, is an adaption of the award-winning Broadway musical of the same name. Starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, the movie has already been the subject of controversy after criticism of Grande's casting as one of the main witches, as well as outrage from Erivo over a fan-generated edit to the movie's official poster.
But I've got a feeling that linking to a porn site on their dolls probably has the team scrambling more than any of the previous controversies.
Mattel, the toy giant responsible for the dolls, issued an apology for the link on the packaging and called it a "misprint." The packages were supposed to link to the website wickedmovie.com.
"Mattel was made aware of a misprint on the packaging of the Mattel Wicked collection dolls, primarily sold in the U.S., which intended to direct consumers to the official WickedMovie.com landing page. We deeply regret this unfortunate error and are taking immediate action to remedy this.
Parents are advised that the misprinted, incorrect website is not appropriate for children. Consumers who already have the product are advised to discard the product packaging or obscure the link and may contact Mattel Customer Service for further information."
Yeah, not a great look.
Now, do kids actually read the box or visit the website on their toys? Well, I don't have kids so I'm not sure, but I'd have to guess not.
Still, it's incredibly disturbing that a toy giant like Mattel - who probably has to go through 10 levels of approval and bureaucracy for anything they do - would let something like that get through without SOMEBODY catching it. Even a, 'Hey, did we confirm this website is right?' Nothing?
And listen, is it plausible that it was just an innocent mistake? Sure. Lazy employees might have just forgotten to check the link and sent it on through without even visiting the website. Hell, maybe that's the most likely explanation.
But after everything that's happened the past few years, and the reputation that Hollywood has for being a bunch of pedophiles who target children, obviously this isn't going to do anything to help them shake that image.
Of course now with the "misprint" that's probably just going to make this edition of these dolls "collectors" items at some point in the future.
