Mick Fanning’s mother has spoken out against KFC’s recent ad spoofing her son’s encounter with a shark.
It was the shark encounter seen across the globe. Mick Fanning’s near-death experience with a Great White during this year’s WSL event at J-Bay went viral, making Mick more widely Google searched on the Internet than Barack Obama and even Amy Schumer. And finally, after months, the fanfare died down and the world seemed to move on. But then Kentucky Fried Chicken of South Africa created a parody video of the attack, jumpstarting the conversation again.
As expected, many found the advertisement to be insensitive and callous, a cheap ploy for KFC to benefit off of someone else’s frightening encounter. And now Mick’s mother, Elizabeth Osborne – who watched her son experience the harrowing encounter from the beach – has expressed how she feels about it.
“I think it is very disrespectful,” Osborne told The Sydney Morning Herald. “Some families have had fatalities and some people are still absolutely scarred without limbs. It’s disrespectful to them and Mick is not at all happy with that.”
Mick’s mom also mentioned that the WSL is working towards getting the ad removed from the air. They’ve assembled a team of lawyers to proceed with legal action if the ad isn’t discontinued. Meanwhile Mick has other things on his mind, like winning his fourth world title. He’s currently in the number one spot as he and the rest of the tour head to Portugal for the second to last stop.