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COMEDIAN Matt Rife is getting a lot of hate over his controversial new e.l.f. makeup ad about “overpriced beauty.”
His inclusion in e.l.f.’s TikTok campaign has been slammed by viewers months after he fended off plastic surgery rumors.
Rife’s involvement in the ad follows intense speculation about his alleged multiple plastic surgeries, rumors he dismissed in his memoir published last year.
The comedian sparked rumors that he quietly went under the knife after fans discovered old photos of the star with a drastically different look.
Regarding e.l.f., many upset women have pledged to stop buying the brand, with mothers proclaiming they won’t purchase it for their daughters and dedicated fans expressing their disgust over the tone-deaf advertisement.
Customers have criticized the firm for including Rife to plug makeup despite a domestic violence joke he told in 2023.
One critic of e.l.f.’s choice took to social media, stating, “In Matt Rife’s Netflix stand-up special Natural Selection, he began with a domestic violence joke, suggesting a woman wouldn’t have a black eye if she could cook.”
“You didn’t have the budget for a comedian who doesn’t joke about abuse?” asked another shocked viewer on the brand’s Instagram post.
E.l.f. faced backlash for being deemed “disgusting” by one shopper. Another consumer questioned, “Is Matt Rife here to sell us concealer for black eyes from domestic violence?”
And another user wanted to know if the makeup brand would “put Andrew Tate in an ad next?”
He faced backlash after jokes on his Netflix special appeared to make light of domestic violence.
Rife told the story of eating at a restaurant with a pal when they spotted their female server had a black eye.
They discussed why the owners wouldn’t have the woman working out of sight – in the kitchen – to avoid customers asking questions.
“Yeah, but I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn’t have a black eye,” Rife joked in the special.
The brand has now apologized for upsetting loyal customers, admitting it “missed the mark.”
The ad features Rife, 29, and drag queen Heidi N Closet, an American drag performer who was a contestant in RuPaul’s Drag Race.
It has attracted nearly 20,000 comments on TikTok alone in since being launched earlier this week.
It features the pair fronting a spoof legal commercial – “E.l.f.ino and Schmarnes defending your eyes, lips, funds.”
It asks “have you fallen victim to overpriced beauty?”
Rife humorously remarks that E.l.f.ino and Schmarnes have “represented millions of clients, ensuring they access the beauty products they deserve at prices that don’t harm their livelihoods.”
“I know a thing or two about red flags, and pricey makeup, you deserve better than that.”
He then opens up a suitcase stuffed with piles of cash, and makeup.
The pair – described as “affordable beauty attorneys” – then offer to help provide “cold hard lash”.
FEARS FOR HEIDI
There were fears that Heidi might suffer as a result of the “disgusting” ad.
One person wrote, “Why did you put the beautiful, hilarious, heidi with matt? Heidi deserves this ad, you did her dirty by putting them together.”
Another warned, “Sales are gonna plummet and they are gonna blame Heidi when it’s actually Matt Rife’s fault.”
One viewer noted: “In his Netflix special [he] joked about domestic violence… He’s a very unlikeable person.”
E.l.f. apology to makeup customers over ad
The brand has released a public statement, after the backlash to its ad:
“You know us, we’re always listening and we’ve heard you.
“This campaign aimed to humorously spotlight beauty injustice.
“We understand we missed the mark with people we care about in our e.l.f. community.
“While e.l.f.ino & schmarnes closes today, we’ll continue to make the case against overpriced beauty.”
Another vowed, “I will never spend another dollar with elf. They know the jokes be made about D V.”
And one fumed, “Your gel moisturizer and cream moisturizer are perfect for me; I’ve been buying them religiously.
“And now I’m done. It’s absolute bulls**t for you to make money off women and give it to Matt f***ing Rife. May the company plummet.”
Another fumed, “Okay cool. So elf really doesn’t give a s**t about us, the ones that actually support the business!
“Why would you ever think Matt Rife would be a good spokesperson for e.l.f. cosmetics? Do you guys really want to go under?”
May the company plummet
Many requested recommendations for alternative makeup, with one lamenting, “Darn I loved ELF but as a domestic violence survivor I simply can’t buy from you guys after this.”
JEANS AD
The huge backlash follows a mixed reaction to Sydney Sweeney’s racy jeans ad in July.
Some – such as US President Donald Trump – praised it as “the hottest,” while critics compared the advert, which declares “Sydney Sweeney has great genes,” to “Nazi propaganda.”
The U.S. Sun has contacted both e.l.f. and Rife for comment.
APOLOGY
Kory Marchisotto, E.l.f. beauty’s global chief marketing officer, told the Business of Fashion “obviously we’re very surprised,” at the negative response.
“There is a big gap between our intention and how this missed the mark for some people… we always aim to deliver positivity, and this one didn’t.
“So we find ourselves in a position where, quite honestly, that doesn’t feel good for us.”
The firm issued a statement on Wednesday, which said, “You know us, we’re always listening and we’ve heard you.
“This campaign aimed to humorously spotlight beauty injustice.
“We understand we missed the mark with people we care about in our e.l.f. community.
“While e.l.f.ino & schmarnes closes today, we’ll continue to make the case against overpriced beauty.”
