Did Mr. Big’s death kill Peloton’s goodwill?

*(spoiler alert if you want to watch the Sex and the City Reboot)*

I am sure many of you are familiar with this story, but in case some of us aren’t major ‘Sex in the City’ fans, I thought I would share a brief post on it about a recent trademark issue that came up in the show’s 2021 reboot.

The first episode of new Sex and the City “And Just Like That” reboot featured the main character’s husband (‘Mr.  Big’) riding a Peloton bike and dying of a heart attack shortly after. On this topic, I found an interesting article from the New York Times featuring some legal commentary on this, about whether Peloton could have grounds for bringing a lawsuit against HBO for how their trademark was used in that episode. According to the lawyer cited in this article, Peloton could sue for a clear depreciation in Peloton’s good will, as there was a drop in the value of Peloton shares after the episode premiered.  The article also notes that Peloton did not know about how the trademark would be used in this episode, which could create issues for HBO as well because product placements like this should be “mutually beneficial”. Nonetheless, the article also addresses Peloton’s response, which seems more humorous than legal, as they created a parody ad featuring a Ryan Reynolds voiceover and a spokesperson for the company noting that Mr Big’s “extravagant lifestyle” was likely a major factor in his death as well.

Although this might mean that this particular case may not yield a major legal dispute, I thought this article raised interesting issues about Trademarks being used in fictional TV/movies, and would recommend reading it in full!

Full article citation: Isabella Grullon Paz, “The Big Question: Could Peloton Sue Over Its ‘And Just Like That’ Appearance?”, (11 December 2021), The New York Times. Online at: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/11/arts/television/peloton-sex-and-the-city.html