Gisele Takes on Internet Trolls

Gisele B?ndchen is fulfilling the modern female fantasy of shutting down internet trolls in her new trailer for activewear brand Under Armour. The Brazilian supermodel is the first non-athlete to represent the company, and the creatives at Under Armour decided to anticiapte any backlash in a clever and empowering video. As Gisele paces coolly into a studio, she faces up against a punch bag and gets jabbing. The walls behind her have tweets projected onto them, critiquing her new spokesperson role, with comments such as, “Gisele is just a model,” spurring her on to be fiercer and more powerful. The girl can kick.

Leanne Fremar, SVP and Creative Director of Women at Under Armour,?explained to The Cut why the company went down this route with Gisele’s fist ad: “We are expecting that there will be people that question the authenticity of our choice and the authenticity of women’s choices. All of that commentary will be there for the audience to see in real time.” Gisele joins champion skier Lindsay Vonna and soccer star Kelley O?Hara as one of Under Armour’s ambassador. It’s also a family affair – husband Tom Brady joind the influential roster in 2010.

It’s a powerful minute and ends with the slogan I WILL WHAT I WANT.? Also, it’s got the hallmark of relevance. Internet trolls are now common parlance in media stories, especially those involving powerful and influential women. Last summer saw classicist Mary Beard shut down her harasser by calling out his mother. Only recently Robin William’s daughter Zelda took a social media break after being subject to a flurry of hate filled comments on her personal accounts in the wake of her father’s tragic death. Last week feminist blogger Anita Sarkeesian had to leave her home after the death and rape threats she regularly receives became too much. Sarkeesian posted a video on her website, Feminist Frequency, calling out video games with misogynistic tropes.

Maybe we need a Gisele video game.

Jeanne Sutton @jeannedesutun