Dolls released to promote the new movie adaptation of the Broadway musical Wicked have been placed in stores wrapped in packaging that directs fans to a hardcore pornography website.
Stunned fans reacted with shock to the X-rated error which saw the toys list Wicked.com as a suggested destination, instead ofWickedMovie.com.
The latter offers fans a movie trailer and an opportunity to purchase tickets. The former, the home of Wicked Pictures, offers parody porn movies such as Captain Marvel XXX.
“That’s an insane oversight, someone getting fired lol,” one person wrote on X.
“Whoever did the Mattel Wicked Dolls packaging is COOKED,” someone else offered.
The packaging directed fans to an X-rated website.
Another said this “might be the biggest fail in official merch history” and noted that it was children who were likely to accidentally visit the adult site.
Others noted how unlikely the error was, given how many people would have needed to sign off on the product.
But one Reddit user revealed the problem is not new.
“Fun fact: in elementary school I asked my parents for tickets to see Wicked [the musical],” they recalled.
“My dad told me to find them online so he could look and order. Naturally and logically, I type in ‘www.wicked.com’ into good ole internet explorer. I’m still traumatised 15 years later.”
Only one of these sites is safe for work, or children.
Mattel has now apologised for the mistake.
“Mattel was made aware of a misprint on the packaging of the Mattel Wicked collection dolls, primarily sold in the US, which intended to direct consumers to the official WickedMovie.com landing page,” the company said in a media statement.
“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.”
