An ad for the new 2017 Fiat 124 Spider, which features Charlie Sheen driving wildly in the new roadster, was notably absent during the unveiling of the two-seater vehicle at the Los Angeles Auto Show earlier this week.
The video, which was still incomplete, was shown to some reporters during a sneak preview of the new Fiat 124 roadster at the Fiat Chrysler headquarters in Auburn Hill, Michigan, on November 3.
On November 17, Sheen went on the Today show and revealed to the world he was HIV positive and has kept it secret for four years. News spread of Sheen's former partners feeling outraged because he allegedly didn't tell them before having sexual relations with them.
Since then, the Fiat ad with Charlie Sheen on it seemed to have been taken off from the company's marketing plans.What happened between the sneak preview and the L.A. Auto Show debut?
An article on the DetroitBureau.com mentioned that FCA spokesperson Diane Martin said "At this time, there is no plan for any FIAT creative outside of 'House Arrest' that features Charlie Sheen to run on-air or online."
Martin also said that Olivier Francois, the Italian brand's global boss and head of FCA marketing, and his team "shoot creative for many purposes -- oftentimes it is for internal presentations or auto show presentation purposes only -- and is not ever intended to run as part of an on-air or online campaign."
Does this hesitation to air the ad have anything to do with Sheen's revelation that he has HIV?
According to an article on Jalopnik.com, Martin said in an e-mail that "it will be based on what he [Francois] feels is the best creative material he reviews for the launch over the course of the coming year -- and not by Mr. Sheen's recent health acknowledgment."
She added that Francois may yet go to his "drawer of creative material and later decide to run/air a specific video from a previous shoot online or on-air -- that possibility always exists."
The article on the DetroitBureau stated that several industry insiders have shared their views that "it is not entirely unheard of for a campaign to be scrapped or delayed, and for a variety of reasons. But they also agreed that it is rare to see a company like Fiat Chrysler go so far as it did with a major celebrity who typically commands a hefty salary for such an appearance -- even if Sheen is, as spokesperson Martin suggested, 'a friend of the Fiat brand'."
Joe Phillippi, an auto analyst with AutoTrends Consulting, said the reason Fiat may have dropped Sheen's latest effort was because "They don't want to touch this... I think they're embarrassed by the HIV situation... or maybe they don't want to be embarrassed."
Phillippi commented it would be "uncomfortable" to use the ad with Sheen on it "because the market for the new Fiat 124 Spider will be skewed towards women."
The "Two and a Half Men" actor appeared previously in a campaign for Fiat's high-performance sub-brand Abarth. The ad was titled "House Arrest," and it shows the pepped-up version of the little Fiat 500 screeching through the hallways of a mansion where a lavish party was underway. When he pulled to a stop, Sheen steps out -- wearing an ankle monitoring bracelet.
The still-incomplete video featuring the new Fiat 124 roadster shown to reporters followed a nearly identical theme as the "House Arrest" ad, an article on Yahoo! disclosed, with the new roadster going through its paces before the window opens to reveal Sheen behind the wheel. "Some people watch car porn," he says to the camera. "I prefer to make it."
