#John Oliver Blasts Budweiser’s Response to Backlash Over Trans Influencer Partnership

John Oliver took a portion out of Last Week Tonight to discuss Anheuser-Busch’s recent response to fierce right-wing criticism the beer brand faced following its partnership with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

At the beginning of April, Mulvaney, who has more than 10.8 million followers on social media, posted a video showing her opening a can of Bud Light, with the hashtag #budlightpartner. But the Bud Light-Mulvaney partnership quickly drew negative comments from people who claimed they were angry about the world going “woke.”

“People on the right absolutely lost their shit over this because Bud Light partnered with a trans woman,” Oliver said. “There have been calls for boycotts and this incredibly stupid video from Kid Rock.”

The Last Week Tonight host went on to play a video the singer-songwriter posted on social media of him shooting at cases of Bud Light with a rifle. Oliver then shot back with a few of his own thoughts on the video.

“I don’t think there’s a more dangerous way to dispose of Bug Light other than, of course, drinking it,” he explained. “And second, not to gun shame Child Rock here, but you are 20 yards away from a target that’s bright, identifiable, and crucially stationary, and you are spraying bullets all over the place. Perhaps that is why it sure seems like you may have help there because if you watch it slow down, you’ll notice that three blasts that actually destroy the cases appear to be coming from the right.”

Oliver added that there have been several videos shared online of people destroying Bud Light and Anheuser-Busch products, “because there’s one thing that hurts a company, it’s destroying their product after it’s already been purchased.”

But the host then moved to focus on “some real nastiness” behind the criticism, saying, the “moral panic around trans rights” comes at the same time that anti-LGBTQ laws are being passed in several states, including some prohibiting gender-affirming care for minors.

Amid the controversy, Oliver said Anheuser-Busch did release a statement saying in part, “We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. … We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer.” But after showing the statement to viewers, Oliver said he finds it “really annoying to be both sides in something when the two sides are: I am trans, and that makes me so mad I’m gonna shoot $65 worth of non-refundable beer.”

The Last Week Tonight host then processed to play a newly-released commercial from Budweiser, which featured its infamous Clydesdale horse galloping across different areas of the United States. The ad ended with a narrator saying, “This is a story bigger than beer. This is the story of the American spirit.”

Oliver had quite a few words to say about the commercial. “They are clearly so afraid of offending anyone, they put out an ad essentially saying America, something something.”

The host then went on to slam Budweiser for using a shot of the New York City skyline in the video, with the narrator saying, “remember.” “Is that a 9/11 reference by Budweiser?” Oliver asked. “Because shots of a horse running through the planes and remembering 9/11 feels less like an ad and more like the results of feeding an AI program the prompt: America, freedom, I’m sorry.”

Before playing his own take on a commercial for Budweiser to mock the beer brand’s latest ad, Oliver called their version “a huge misfire for Anheuser-Busch.”

He added, “When bigots are loudly announcing, they don’t like your beer because they are bigots, that is an opportunity for you to say, ‘Then our beer is not for you.’”

Oliver’s thoughts on the controversy also come a day after the Associated Press reported that the marketing executive who oversaw a partnership between Bud Light and Mulvaney is taking a leave of absence. According to reports, Alissa Heinerscheid, Bud Light’s vice president of marketing, will be replaced by Todd Allen, most recently global vice president of Budweiser.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.