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The year's most disturbing horror movie was an ad for an exercise bike.
A few weeks ago, fitness brand Peloton released a holiday-themed commercial for its luxury torture devices. The ad looked more like a teaser for a new season of Black Mirror. A woman is gifted a Peloton bike (retail price: $2,245) by her husband. It quickly consumes her life—and judging by her facial expressions, not entirely by choice.
The ad was widely mocked, sending the company's market value plummeting and its stars scrambling to salvage their careers.
"My image is being associated with sexism, with the patriarchy, with abuse, for example," the so-called "Peloton husband," Sean Hunter, told Good Morning America. "That's not who I am."
But what of the long-suffering "Peloton wife"?
Don't worry, everyone: She's safe, and she's drinking Portland-made gin.
The actor, whose name is Monica Ruiz, came out of hiding yesterday, appearing in another advertisement, this time for Aviation Gin, the spirit brand founded by Portland distiller House Spirits. (Though the brand was sold to New York marketing firm Davos in 2016, House still makes the gin as a contracted distiller.) In the ad, Ruiz, seated at a bar, stares blankly into the camera, while two friends struggle to find the right words for the moment.
"You're safe here," one of them assures her. They cheer "to new beginnings," then Ruiz slams her martini.
"You look great, by the way," one of the friends quips at the end.
The ad was apparently the brainchild of actor Ryan Reynolds, who acquired a significant ownership stake in Aviation in 2018 and has already put his specific comedic spin on the brand's marketing.
Related: Ryan Reynolds' New Aviation Gin Ad Hilariously Satirizes Artisan-Obsessed Portland.
"When Ryan and his production team called about Aviation Gin, they helped me find some humor in the situation," Ruiz said in a statement. "I am grateful to both Peloton and now Aviation Gin for the work and giving me the opportunity to do what I love to do."
It's unclear if the ad is meant to be part of the extended Peloton Cinematic Universe, or if it's more of a meta commentary on the backlash to the original ad itself.
Either way, we look forward to seeing Peloton Husband crying in a big empty house next to his $2,000 exercise bike in a Michelob commercial soon.