A proposed class action lawsuit was filed against the toymaker Mattel on Tuesday after a design mistake led to the packaging for toys for the “Wicked” movie directing consumers to a pornographic website.
The company was sued by Holly Ricketson, a mother from South Carolina, who said she had purchased a “Wicked” doll for her daughter, according to Reuters.
Ricketson’s daughter followed the website address on the toy’s packaging, which led her to an adult entertainment website that displayed pornographic photos.
“Plaintiff’s minor daughter immediately showed her mother the photographs and both were horrified by what they saw. If Plaintiff had been aware of such an inappropriate defect in the product, she would not have purchased it,” said the lawsuit, per Deadline.
The plaintiff believes the packaging error caused her and her daughter to suffer from “emotional distress,” Variety reported.
According to Deadline, Ricketson was bothered that the company never offered any sort of refund to those who had purchased the dolls with the misprint.
What led up to the lawsuit?
As previously reported by the Deseret News, in November, Mattel released dolls of characters from the new movie “Wicked”.
A website printed on the dolls’ packaging was meant lead customers to the movie’s website, but instead, the address led to a pornographic entertainment website.
Mattel apologized for the misprint and pulled the dolls from the shelves.
What is the lawsuit asking for?
According to Reuters, the lawsuit accuses the company of “negligence, selling products unfit for sale, and violating California consumer protection laws.”
The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday, asks for at least $5 million in damages for any customer in the U.S. who bought the “Wicked” dolls with the misprint.
No one connected to the film, including Universal, is named as a defendant, per Deadline.
What has Mattel said about the lawsuit?
According to Reuters, the toy company has declined to comment on the lawsuit.
A previous statement from the company said they have resumed sales of the “Wicked” dolls with the correct website printed on the packaging.
“The previous misprint on the packaging in no way impacts the value or play experience provided by the product itself in the limited number of units sold before the correction,” Mattel’s statement said according to Deadline.
Did the misprint impact ‘Wicked’s ticket sales?
Michael Moses, Universal’s chief marketing officer, told Variety that he doesn’t think the Mattel controversy harmed the movie’s ticket sales.
Since the movie’s release, “Wicked” has made $263 million domestically and $360 million globally at the box office.
According to Variety, Moses said, “I always categorize incidents between what might actually damage the desire to see the movie and what might not. I think that was an example of one that’s an anecdote more than a threat.”