00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the Top 10 Celebrity Endorsements
00:09that Backfired.
00:12For this list, we'll be looking at the most infamous celebrity endorsements and the controversies
00:18that followed.
00:20What do you make of these partnerships?
00:22Let us know in the comments below!
00:25Number 10.
00:26David Beckham – Brill Cream David Beckham is one of the most popular soccer
00:32players in history and a national British icon.
00:41Brill cream is one of the most popular hair styling products in Britain.
00:46It makes sense that they would pair together, but you'd think that a celebrity promoting
00:50a hair cream would, you know, have hair.
00:53Beckham famously shaved his head about halfway through his 4-year contract with Brill Cream.
01:03While the company did release a public statement defending Beckham and his new do, we can't
01:09imagine they were too pleased about their lost revenue, as Beckham's shaved head reportedly
01:14lost Brill Cream quite a bit of business.
01:22Number 9.
01:23Sybil Shepard – The Beef Industry Council Sybil Shepard was one of the biggest stars
01:28of the 70s and 80s, starring in the likes of Taxi Driver and Moonlighting.
01:39The beef industry knew a star when they saw one, and wanted her for their mission.
01:44The Beef Industry Council, or BIC, approached Shepard and asked her to promote the business,
01:50even spending $30 million on an ad campaign titled Beef – Real Food for Real People.
02:01But shortly after the partnership began, Shepard gave an interview to Family Circle magazine
02:06and was cited saying that she was quote, trying to stay away from red meat.
02:11Oops!
02:12Shepard claimed that she was misquoted, and the spokesman for the BIC stated their relationship
02:17would not be affected.
02:19However, Shepard's contract was not renewed.
02:26Number 8.
02:27Howard Stern – Snapple Howard Stern is probably the last person you'd
02:33want to tick off.
02:34He was known as the morning shock jock for New York's WXRK in the 80s, 90s, and early
02:40aughts, with his show being syndicated and listened to by millions.
02:45He had a reputation for saying whatever he wanted, especially back then.
02:50And this was something Snapple found out the hard way.
03:00Stern had a good thing going with the company, but it was bought out by Quaker Oats in 1994.
03:06They wanted to present a more family-friendly image, and dropped the controversial Stern
03:12as a spokesperson.
03:13Try Snapple, it's made from the best stuff on earth.
03:15Everybody loves Snapple, it's the best.
03:18Stern then trash-talked the beverage on his show, and referred to it as quote, crapple.
03:24It resulted in some bad press, and Quaker Oats sold the company to Triarch just three
03:29years later.
03:30Kenny, you can't blame someone over one lousy bit, you can't go firing them.
03:33Oh yes I can Howard.
03:35Number 7.
03:36LeBron James – Samsung The South Korean tech company got a huge star
03:41in LeBron James.
03:43Arguably the most popular basketball player of the modern era, James has been closely
03:48allied with Samsung since its introduction of the Galaxy Note 2 back in 2012.
04:00In March of 2014, James suffered a malfunction with his Samsung device, and tweeted quote,
04:07My phone just erased everything it had in it and rebooted.
04:11One of the sickest feelings I've ever had in my life.
04:15The tweet reached millions of people, and we just know Samsung must have called him
04:20minutes later.
04:21That or James realized his blunder on his own, because he quickly deleted the tweet.
04:27Unfortunately, the damage had already been done.
04:31Despite James' attempts at rectifying the situation, Samsung surely had a small PR nightmare
04:38on its hands.
04:42Number 6.
04:43Charles Barkley – Weight Watchers LeBron James is the basketball star of our
04:48time, and Charles Barkley was the star of the 90s.
04:59He is an 11-time all-star, and won the Most Valuable Player award in 1993 during his turn
05:06with the Phoenix Suns.
05:08Barkley then became a prominent TV analyst, and continued his brand endorsements.
05:13One was with the diet company Weight Watchers.
05:21During a game between the Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat however, Barkley called Weight
05:25Watchers a scam.
05:28Many people believe that he wasn't calling the program a scam, but the idea that he gets
05:32paid truckloads of money to simply promote a product.
05:36Still, it's not exactly a great look, and the statement could have done with some careful
05:41wording.
05:47Number 5.
05:48Ashton Kutcher – Popchips Ashton Kutcher did a lot for Popchips.
05:53He invested in the company early on, and was the first celebrity to endorse their product
05:58through both social media and commercials.
06:02Unfortunately, one particular ad got him and the company in some very hot water.
06:12Kutcher appeared in a commercial that parodied dating ads.
06:16He played multiple characters, including an Indian man named Raj.
06:21Kutcher appeared in brownface and stereotypical Indian garb, and put on an offensive accent.
06:28The commercial received tons of backlash, inciting Popchips to pull the Raj character
06:34from their marketing campaign.
06:44How this even aired is beyond us.
06:50Number 4.
06:51Chris Brown – Got Milk Created by the ad agency Goodbye Silverstein
06:57and Partners, Got Milk is an enormously popular campaign that encourages people to drink milk.
07:06Many celebrities endorsed the campaign, including R&B singer Chris Brown.
07:12In 2009, however, Brown came under fire for assaulting Rihanna, leading to widespread
07:18condemnation and troubled business relationships.
07:29His music was pulled from radio stations, and many businesses ended their associations
07:34with the singer.
07:35One of them was Got Milk, who had partnered with Brown for a milk mustache campaign at
07:40the time.
07:41The ads were pulled, and all ties with Brown were immediately severed.
07:51Number 3.
07:52Sharon Stone – Dior Founded in 1946, Dior has become one of the
07:58biggest names in luxury fashion.
08:00In 2005, the French company partnered with screen legend Sharon Stone, who promoted one
08:06of their skincare lines.
08:13But everything crumbled just three years into their relationship.
08:17When Stone was asked about the Sichuan earthquake at the Cannes Film Festival, she insinuated
08:23that it was karma for the country's human rights tensions.
08:32The comment resulted in a huge financial fallout in China.
08:36UME Cineplex banned all of her movies, and Dior pulled all of their ads featuring Stone.
08:44Dior China even apologized on Stone's behalf, but the movie star told the New York Times
08:50she took issue with this.
08:52Still, Stone would later apologize in her own words.
09:00Number 2.
09:01Madonna – Pepsi Poor Pepsi has had some crummy judgment throughout
09:06the years.
09:07There's the infamous Kendall Jenner ad, which shamelessly trivialized the Black Lives
09:12Matter movement to sell soda.
09:14They also had a run-in with Madonna in 1989.
09:18Pepsi had paid the pop star $5 million to appear in a commercial with her hit song,
09:24Like a Prayer.
09:30Just one day after the commercial aired, the song's music video premiered on MTV, and
09:36the reception was not welcoming.
09:38The music video attempted to address racism and the relationship between religious and
09:43sexual ecstasy.
09:45Among its controversial visuals were the burning crosses of the Ku Klux Klan.
09:53People called for a widespread ban of the video, and Pepsi came under a lot of fire
09:59for associating with the song.
10:01Bowing to the outrage, they canceled the marketing campaign and lost out big time.
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10:28Number 1.
10:29O.J. Simpson, Hertz.
10:31Today, we all know O.J. Simpson for his infamous homicide trial.
10:35But back in the day, Simpson was the biggest name in sports.
10:46He was a highly successful running back for the Buffalo Bills and set numerous football
10:51records.
10:52This led to an endorsement deal with the Hertz Corporation, which deals in rental cars.
10:57The famous commercials saw Simpson running through an airport and dodging various obstacles
11:03while fans cheered him on.
11:09The campaign was unbelievably successful, earning more popularity for Simpson and driving
11:15Hertz profits and brand awareness through the roof.
11:18Of course, this prosperous business relationship collapsed in 1994, when Simpson was charged
11:24with killing both his ex-wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend, Ron Goldman.
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