Bella Thorne Releases Edgy New PETA US Ad for ‘Boycott SeaWorld’ Day
For Immediate Release:
23 July 2018
Contact:
Jennifer White +44 (0) 20 7837 6327, ext 222; [email protected]
BELLA THORNE RELEASES EDGY NEW PETA US AD FOR ‘BOYCOTT SEAWORLD’ DAY
Actor, Who Filmed Commercial for the Abusement Park as a Child, Urges Company to Release Orcas Into Seaside Sanctuaries
London – Just ahead of “Boycott SeaWorld” Day on 24 July, Famous in Love actor Bella Thorne appears as a half-human, half–suffering orca in a powerful and provocative new PETA US campaign shot by top celebrity photographer Brian Bowen Smith that proclaims, “Break the Chains: Boycott SeaWorld.”
In an accompanying video spot, the star explains that she shot a promo for SeaWorld when she was younger but now regrets supporting the abusement park, where seven marine mammals died last year alone: “When I was a little girl, I did a commercial for SeaWorld, and even then, I knew there wasn’t something right. … These beautiful animals are in so much pain. They’re taken away from their community, their homes, their mothers, and they don’t have a choice. They’re locked in there.”
And she urges fans to speak up and take action on Tuesday, adding, “F**k SeaWorld! … Don’t be afraid to show up with your signs and make your point.”
PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment” – notes that in the wild, orcas form complex relationships, work cooperatively to find food, and travel up to 140 miles in the ocean every day. But those at SeaWorld are housed in incompatible groups inside tiny tanks, and some are even given the drug diazepam in order to manage their stress-induced aggressive behaviour. So far, 41 orcas have died on SeaWorld’s watch.
Thorne joins a long list of celebrities – including Gillian Anderson, Joaquin Phoenix, Alicia Silverstone, and P!nk – who’ve teamed up with PETA and our international affiliates to promote kindness towards animals.
The ad was conceptualised and produced by creative director Nim Shapira and Photoshop artist Shine Horovits. For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk or SeaWorldOfHurt.com.
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