Activision Blizzard's Call of Duty ad was pulled from UK screens after theAdvertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruledit trivialised sexual violence.
In November 2025, a flashy spot forCall of Duty: Black Ops 7flashed all over YouTube, ITV, and Channel 5. The mock airport security line is shown in the footage.
Nine people wrote to the ASA expressing the opinion that the spot was irresponsible and offensive.
One viewer, a Birmingham mum, said she felt 'appalled' when she saw the clip as she was scrolling through her phone. Another working at a local airport called the ad 'a cheap insult to everyone who's ever had to go through security.'
Their complaints concerned the non-consensual and humiliating nature of the search shown.
Activision Blizzard UK Ltd argued the campaign was aimed only at adults, as the game is 18-rated. The company stated that the ad had been cleared by Clearcast, a pre-approval body, and that the ad was subject to an 'ex-kids' timing restriction.
Activision insisted the scene was a deliberately absurd parody, and not a realistic depiction of airport checks. They added that the humour was not the result of sexualisation, but was a result of discomfort.
'Even if some viewers did infer innuendo, it did not contain explicit content or objectifying imagery,' the firm said.
ASA deemed the ad 'trivialised sexual violence' because it implied a non-reviewed, invasive search. Though there was never any explicit imagery the man was not naked and the humour was based on implied threat of painful penetration.
The ruling says the advert is 'irresponsible and offensive' and should not be displayed again in the same form. A second complaint about a scene including a container of prescription pills with a wink was dismissed.
Source: International Business Times UK
