Peloton Had the Perfect Reply to Shocking Sex and the City Cameo

UPDATE 12/16: Today, Peloton removed the ad from its digital and social channels following a report of sexual abuse allegations made against Chris Noth. The actor called these claims “categorically false.”

ORIGINAL STORY:

Look who’s alive and quipping!

If you’re the one human being on the planet who doesn’t know about the Mr. Big plot twist in the Sex and the City reboot on HBO Max, you might want to stop reading now.

For the rest of you … the character dies of heart failure in the first episode of And Just Like That… after a 45-minute ride led by Peloton instructor Allegra, played by Jess King.

But thanks to Ryan Reynolds and his agency Maximum Effort, Big lives again, portrayed by Noth, who stars with King in this cheeky commercial that stirred up the internet over the weekend:

“And just like that, the world was reminded that regular cycling stimulates and improves your heart, lungs and circulation, reducing your risk of cardiovascular diseases,” Reynolds says in narration at the end. “Cycling strengthens your heart muscles, lowers resting pulse and reduces blood fat levels. He’s alive.”

A Peloton rep told AdAge that the project came together in less than 48 hours, serving as a brand response to last week’s brouhaha about the Mr. Big revelation. Peloton’s stock tumbled, and the connected bike company issued a statement from a cardiologist blaming Mr. Big’s excessive lifestyle for his untimely demise and suggesting that Peloton rides “may have even helped delay his cardiac event.”

Or else that peddling killed him. Either way … Peloton!

It’s a pitch-perfect pop-culture riposte that strikes a merrily meta and irreverent tone. And there’s an extra lure for ad geeks, as Reynolds and Maximum Effort previously hyped Aviation Gin by lampooning Peloton for its derided 2019 holiday commercial.

CREDITS:

Agency: Maximum Effort
Head of Production: Kennedy Davey
Chief Creative Officer: Dan Donovan

Production: ArtClass Content Studio
Director: Vincent Peone
Managing Director, Live: Rebecca Niles
Managing Director, Post: Corwin Carroll
Managing Director, Content Studio: Austin Bickford
Director of Growth: Todd Griffin
Senior Producer: Johnny Eastlund
Production Coordinator: Kat Garelli
Assistant Post Producer: Hannah Squeglia
DP: John Belinski
Line Producer: Gabriela Tamariz

1st AC: Tom Kane
2nd AC: Cory Hess
Gaffer: Devan Davies-Wood
VTR: Jose Segura
Key Grip: Austin Pogrob
Sound: Bill Hennessy
Sound Mixer & Engineer: Rob DiFondi
HMU: Cati James
Wardrobe Stylist: Kevin Barbagallo
Production Designer: Taylor Barry
PA: Francesca Fontaine
Art PAs: Yusef Ali, Callie Keels Ju
On Set Editor: Oren Brimer
Covid Compliance Officer: Jodi Karem