Snickers has pulled an ad (shown below) for its ice cream bars in Spain after facing accusations of homophobia, a public misstep by the brand in its long-running “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” campaign.

The online spot was removed amid backlash from consumers across Spain, The Guardian reported today. The spot features Spanish influencer Aless Gibaja ordering at a restaurant, wearing pink and behaving stereotypically feminine. The waiter looks back, puzzled, and hands Gibaja a Snickers Ice Cream bar. Suddenly, the influencer transforms into a bearded man, before the tagline appears: You’re not you when you’re hungry (No Eres Tu Cuando Tienes Hambre). The ad was produced by Contrapunto BBDO Madrid.

Snickers apologized in a statement: “We would like to wholeheartedly apologize for any harm caused by a recent advert for Snickers Ice Cream in Spain. We recognize that we got it wrong and have removed the online content immediately,” the brand announced.

Mike Wilke, founder of AdRespect.org, a website intended to provide guidance to corporations on LGBTQ stereotypes, homophobia and transphobia, criticized the ad.  “The way I have assessed things through the years is to look at where is the humor? What are we supposed to be laughing at? And in this ad, we're supposed to be laughing at how much of a sissy this guy is,” he says.

The ad also drew critical coverage on the website LGBTQnation.com, which cited criticism from the Spanish LGBTQ organization Federación Estatal LGTB, which called the ad “shameful and pitiful,” and tweeted: “If you need some training for your next try, we’re here," according to the report.

Several of Snickers advertisements play with the theme of being out of place, as part of the brand’s successful “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” campaign. Snickers, says Wilke, has been walking “a fine line” in several of its ads that deal with gender as a joke, including a 2018 ad featuring Elton John and a 2016 Super Bowl ad starring Willem DeFoe. 

“In all of the cases, they're sort of walking a fine line of, you know you know, the dude looks like a lady,” says Wilke. 

Still, Wilke says, “I think those do better than this last one from Spain.” 

It's not the first time Snickers has been accused of homophobia. A 2008 ad played brazenly into gender stereotypes, as Mr. T shoots Snickers at a feminine speed walker in neon booty shorts. The celebrity shouts “Speed walking? I pity you, fool! You’re a disgrace to the man race!” before pelting him with candy bars from an armed pickup truck. In the end, the tagline flashes: “get some nuts.” And in 2007, Snickers faced backlash for a Super Bowl ad where two men are repulsed after kissing each other. 

Despite these controversial advertisements, Snickers parent company Mars received the highest possible score on Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2021 corporate equality index, which specifically quantifies LGBTQ workplace equity. Another Mars brand, Skittles, has partnered with the organization GLAAD, which focuses on media portrayals and coverage of LGBTQ people.