Mattel, which produces the Barbie doll, has issued an apology after customers complained of the toy company's 'Wicked' edition doll package directing people to a pornographic website, The Guardian reported.
Mattel said “immediate action” is being taken after alarmed customers shared images on social media of the doll's box mistakenly having a porn website link wicked.com printed on the packaging instead of the official wickedmovie.com.
The dolls are Mattel and Universal Pictures collaboration merchandise for the film production company's Ariana Grande starrer Wicked, based on a Tony-winning musical. The erroneous link was printed on the merch's Glinda and Elphaba doll packs — both lead characters played by Grande and Cynthia Erivo, respectively.
In a statement on November 10, the toy maker apologised for the error and advised customers with children to discard the packaging or obscure the link.
“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 statement read.
“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,” it added.
The misprinted doll packs were found in large retail stores in the US, including Amazon, Kohls, and Target — all Universal's official retail partners. No other stores were affected by the error.
Amazon currently shows the item as “unavailable” in the US, according to the report. The Hollywood Reporters said the packs have been taken off shelves at Target, too.
Social media users pointed out the error in posts and pictures by tagging Mattel.
One user wrote: “The official Mattel Wicked dolls link to a porn site on the box”
Others were very concerned about the error, with one stating: "whoever did this needs to be fired immediately cuz why would they do that knowing that it’s mostly kids buying these dolls"
And another adding, “Hey @Mattel whoever is responsible for your marketing/packaging for the new official Wicked dolls have made a HUGE mistake!”
