The actress who played the wife in the Peloton holiday commercial blames the controversy on her ‘scared’ eyebrows and says she’s shocked the fury didn’t ‘blow over as quickly as I thought it would’.
Monica Ruiz shot to fame after the ad came under fire on social media where critics slammed it as misogynistic and sexist, leading the company to lose millions of dollars and its stock to drop nearly 10 percent in the wake of the backlash.
When asked just what sparked the furor, she said with a laugh, ‘Honestly, I think it was just my face.’
‘My eyebrows looked worried I guess. People were like, “You look scared.” I’m telling you, it was my face, that was the problem, and it just exploded it from there. She looks worried,’ Ruiz said on the Today show Thursday.
‘Peloton wife’ Monica Ruiz says the commercial sparked fury online because of her distressed expression in the holiday ad
‘My eyebrows looked worried I guess. People were like, “You look scared.” I’m telling you, it was my face, that was the problem,’ she said on the Today show
In the commercial Ruiz plays a slender wife who is gifted a $2,000 Peloton stationary bike by her husband for Christmas and vlogs her fitness journey over the course of the year. At the end, she compiles those clips into a thank you video for her husband.
‘It’s crazy to see my face everywhere this much and see everyone talking about it,’ Ruiz told Today host Hoda Kotb.
Ruiz said she was surprised by the fury over the spot because for the first few weeks, no one seemed to notice the ad except for her family and friends.
‘I kept feeling like there was two camps. Some people thought it was a really big deal and some people thought it wasn’t a really big deal,’ Ruiz said.
‘So I thought maybe I should just wait for it to blow over…When it didn’t blow over and people started answering for me…I was like okay. I’ll just let everyone know I’m fine. I’m not in a rehab for mental health anywhere’ she added, explaining her reason for coming on the show.
Despite the public outcry, the commercial caught the eye of actor Ryan Reynolds and he immediately contacted her for a role in a commercial for his company Aviation Gin.
Despite the massive backlash, the commercial caught the eye of actor Ryan Reynolds and landed her a role in a commercial for his company Aviation Gin
‘I feel like I’m in an alternate universe right now,’ Ruiz, a mother-of-two, said on the show
The commercial plays as a follow up to the Peloton ad and features Ruiz sipping Reynolds’ gin to cope with the controversy.
In the ad she toasts to ‘new beginnings’. Reynolds tweeted the ad cheekily saying, ‘Exercise bike not included.’
On the Today show she officially met Reynolds for the first time, who explained how he wanted to create the commercial to play on the Peloton crisis.
‘I feel like I’m in an alternate universe right now. This is so weird!’ Ruiz, a mother-of-two, gushed on the show as she laughed next to the Deadpool star.
Reynolds explained the backstory to that humorous Aviation Gin ad that was filmed in just 36 hours to keep it timely.
‘It started with a text to my creative partner. He sent me the ad and I go “oh wow, I see why there’s some backlash. Can we send her a year’s supply of gin?”‘ Reynolds said.
‘And that sort of evolved from there. We love acknowledging and playing off of the cultural landscape and we thought this was a grand opportunity to do something.
‘We had this thought that we could do this ad without contributing to that divide, without vilifying anybody, just sort of commenting on this person, and the actress and the ad all at once. For us it was a no brainer,’ he added.
As for Ruiz, she hopes that she won’t be branded ‘Peloton wife’ forever and can still land other roles.
‘I hope people can see me as an actress. I like to do movies and TV, and I’m not actuality the Peloton lady, (so) let me work other jobs,’ she said.
Hunter praised his co-star Monica Ruiz for her latest gig, starring in an advertisement for Ryan Reynolds’ Aviation Gin, which played off her role in the controversial Peloton ad
Peloton said in a statement it was ‘disappointed’ its holiday commercial was ‘misinterpreted.’
‘We constantly hear from our members how their lives have been meaningfully and positively impacted after purchasing or being gifted a Peloton Bike or Tread, often in ways that surprise them,’ a company spokesperson said.
‘Our holiday spot was created to celebrate that fitness and wellness journey. While we’re disappointed in how some have misinterpreted this commercial, we are encouraged by — and grateful for — the outpouring of support we’ve received from those who understand what we were trying to communicate,’ it added.
The exercise equipment company that sells bikes for the lowest for $2,245 has been losing value since the ad saga and has come under scrutiny for its practices.
As of Wednesday shares in Peloton dropped by 7% after a short-seller’s report concluded it was overvalued by almost $8billion.
As of Thursday morning Peloton’s stock stood at 30.24, a three point loss since Monday.
Peloton Interactive Inc’s Stock stood at 30.30 points on Thursday afternoon
Peloton’s stock has seen a fall over the course of the week, particularly on Wednesday when a short-seller’s report concluded it was overvalued by almost $8billion
Anyone, Citron RESEARCH found, can convert almost any stationary bike into a $2,000 version from the company
Citron RESEARCH’s report found Peloton was overvalued at $8 billion, when compared to competitors that sell their smart stationary bikes for much less
Peloton CEO and founder John Foley (left) refused to answer questions after the fallout of the company’s controversial commercial. He employs his wife Jill (right) as head of clothing a the company
In the shocking short seller report Andrew Left, of Citron Research based in Beverly Hills, called for Peloton shares to fall to $5 a piece in 2020 – that’s more than an 85 percent drop from where the stock settled on Monday.
He says the company could be worth as little as $1billion.
The report said unless the company ‘makes a machine that works out for you, we will be laughing at $10billion valuation in a year.’ Citron called Peloton’s market value ‘unrealistic’ and ‘disconnected from all reality’.
The downgrade was based on the fact that other manufacturers could produce smart exercise bikes for just $500 and that existing bikes can be converted into Pelotons with a $12 attachment.
‘The competition is not only making virtually identical exercise bikes but ones that are both more affordable and functional,’ the report slammed.
Furthermore the use of Peloton’s app was criticized.
Peloton sells their digital plan for $12.99 for non-bike owners. Customers who do own one of Peloton’s $2,245 bikes are charged $39 for the connected digital fitness plan.
Though the $39 deal offers more features including live workout metrics, the ere isn’t much difference with the $12.99 one.
The explosive Citron report called into question the reliability of CEO and founder John Foley who has wrongly claimed the firm is profitable. He’s yet to speak publicly following the commercial fallout.
Peloton’s stock went public in late September at an offering price of $29 and shares were trading near $30.34 Thursday afternoon.