Walmart in hot water over Paul Walker car accident joke
The retailer mocked the 'Fast and Furious' star's death on Twitter
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Walmart may want to stick to selling frozen dinners — not telling jokes.
The retailer, which brought in $500 billion in revenue in 2018, is in hot water after posting an insensitive tweet mentioning Paul Walker, the “Fast and Furious” star who died as a passenger in a single-car accident in November 2013. He was 40 years old.
“Hey, Paul Walker. Click it, or ticket,” the brand’s official Twitter account posted Thursday.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMT | WALMART INC. | 84.47 | -1.06 | -1.25% |
The comment was in response to a user who tweeted a photo about Walmart selling Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls with an attached gif of a car racing erratically through traffic. The caption: “Me racin[g] to the nearest Wally World,” a reference to Walmart.
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In a statement, Walmart told FOX Business, "We apologize to Paul Walker’s family, friends and fans. The tweet was posted in poor judgement and has been removed.”
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This is not the first time a big brand became snared in a controversy online. Last year, the University of Missouri apologized for a racially insensitive post that some users thought was insensitive to black student-athletes. In 2017, Dolce and Gabbana posted a sneaker ad that read: “I’m thin and gorgeous!” which some users said shamed other body types.
Walmart’s stock has dropped 3 percent in the last month.