This TV spot for Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights
theme park event must have frustrated parents crying foul about deceptive
advertising. The commercial shows a groups of teens escaping from a bunch of ravenous
zombies only to be cornered by a far more horrifying bunch of monstrous
creatures, and then the ad says: “Once you’re inside, there is no way out!” So
this ad must have had frustrated parents driven crazy by rebellious teens and
problem children thinking: “Hey: great! All I have to do is drop them off, and
I’m rid of them for good!” After all, the ad clearly states that there is no
way out once they enter, which obviously obviates any necessity to pick the
kids up later, or ever have to worry about feeding or clothing them ever again,
right? Oh, but once they get home and start to relax, they invariably get a
call on their cell phone from their obnoxious offspring nagging them to come
pick them up, and the parents realize: “Hey, that’s false advertising!”
I think the parents should file a class-action lawsuit
against Universal Studios for deceptive advertising, claiming they’d be rid of
their kids for good if they just took them to the theme park for the Halloween
event. Maybe they’d even win! (They do claim the kids won’t be able to escape,
so technically that is false
advertising.)
Here’s the commercial chicanery:
