Doritos faces boycott over new trans brand ambassador’s alleged tweet about 12-year-old
Doritos Spain is currently facing a widespread boycott after its announcement that transgender artist Samantha Hudson would be its new brand ambassador sparked backlash online. Netizens have allegedly unearthed old tweets from Hudson that display problematic and highly predatory behaviour.
According to Newsweek, Doritos’ Spain branch debuted Hudson as its new brand ambassador during a 50-second promo called “Crunch Talks.”
🙄Samantha Hudson, la nueva imagen de Doritos. Opina pic.twitter.com/wiuHxkanWL
— EDATV (@edatvoficial) March 5, 2024
Hudson has a sizeable audience, with over 350,000 followers on Instagram and a carousel of cameos on massive YouTube channels such as Vogue Spain.
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A lot of commentators may have assumed that this backlash is simply in relation to Hudson’s identity as a trans individual. This wouldn’t be the first time that a brand has been criticised by conservatives for using queer public figures in their campaigns. In 2023, Bud Light experienced a global boycott, predominantly from the far-right, for featuring trans TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney in one of its promotional deals.
#Doritos pic.twitter.com/tmmpNwb1oU
— Memelon Musk (@repomon) March 4, 2024
However shortly after the Doritos promo aired, a number of individuals took to X, formerly Twitter, to bring attention to a series of tweets Hudson had been accused of posting in the past. Notably, in one post, Hudson insinuated that they want to do “hooligan things” to a “12-year-old girl.” In another post, allegedly from Hudson, the artist wrote: “I hate women who are victims of rape and who turn to self-help centres to overcome their trauma. What heavy whores.”
Neither Hudson nor Doritos have responded to the boycott. Nonetheless, it has certainly gained traction on X—with already 10,000 posts and counting under the hashtag #BoycottDoritos.
A lot of individuals are also calling for a complete boycott of PepsiCo, the American company that owns Doritos.
