McDonald’s has pulled a U.K. advertisement depicting a boy dealing with the loss of his father after critics accused it of being insensitive, and said that it exploited the feelings of bereaved children.
The of the 90-second ad shows a young man asking his mother about his deceased father The boy and his father turn out to have little in common — except for their mutual love of Filet-O-Fish sandwiches.
Users on Twitter were not pleased:
I am sickened and disgusted by this advert. Lost my dad at 9. Memories? Yes .Burger? No! Shameful ad #McDonalds
— Cate Wilson💙 (@Cate43) May 12, 2017
Current @McDonaldsUK ad is a disgrace. All about a kid whos dad has died but don't worry he's happy because he's taken to McDonalds. Ban it
— Dan (@1974db) May 13, 2017
“It was never our intention to cause any upset. We are particularly sorry that the advert may have disappointed those people who are most important to us — our customers,” McDonald’s said in a statement reported by CNN.