The new 'Smurfs' reboot hits theatres on 18 July, but netizens have noticed something unusual about its marketing.
That is, nearly all of the movie's posters seem to be focused on Rihanna being cast as Smurfette.
Despite having a stacked cast with the likes of James Cordon, John Goodman, and Nick Offerman joining Rihanna as voice actors of major characters, the bulk of the movie's promotional material is centred around the phrase, 'Rihanna is Smurfette.'
'There are no co-stars, not even a whiff of a director,' Peter Rugman shared on TikTok after noticing the 'Smurfs' posters shared no information beyond the proclamation of Rihanna being Smurfette.
'Smurfs'' promotional focus on Rihanna has fans worried that a good chunk of the film's budget may have been used to pay Rihanna for her involvement, reducing the amount available for the film's production.
'Rihanna Is Smurfette'
Discussion around the film's unusual marketing started with Peter Rugman's viral video, which has amassed over 1.6 million views on TikTok.
'I didn't know this film existed until I saw all the posters on the streets, but would anyone out there care to explain the marketing to me?' he began.
'The film doesn't even seem to have a tagline, just this gospel pronouncement that "Rihanna is Smurfette,"' he added.
Rugman expressed his confusion over why Rihanna being Smurfette is the only consistent information the promotional material seems to have.
'Unless I've got it completely the wrong way around and the title of the film is "Rihanna is Smurfette" and the tagline is just "Smurfs,"' he joked.
He also noted how the wording being 'Rihanna is Smurfette' rather than 'Rihanna as Smurfette' suggests she has become the character herself.
'Am I to assume that Rihanna has become Smurfette in a metaphysical sense and that all previous Smurfettes have been cast aside?' he said, pointing out that Katy Perry had played the iconic character in the 2010s film series, 'The Smurfs.'
Rihanna's Involvement In 'Smurfs'
Compared to her co-stars, Rihanna has much more involvement in the film beyond voice acting.
Rihanna had a lot to do with the movie's musical elements, writing and recording original songs for the soundtrack, including 'Friend of Mine,' which has already been released.
She is also a producer on the film and was reportedly largely involved in the artistic design of Smurfette.
In an interview with Variety, Ramsey Naito, president of Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation, indicated why so much of the film's promotional material is centred around Rihanna.
'When we first met with her [Rihanna], we learned that the Smurfs was her favorite show growing up, and from that moment, everything just clicked. It felt completely natural to reimagine the Smurfs for today's audience with Rihanna as Smurfette because her genuine love for the franchise made her the perfect fit,' he said.
Internet Users Clown On The 'Smurfs' Marketing
TikTok users poked fun at the Rihanna-focused marketing in the comments section of Rugman's video.
'Don't know if you knew this, but Rihanna is Smurfette,' one comment read, with many others asking, 'But who is playing Smurfette?'
'no but this sounds like rihanna being smurfette is an actual plot point like the singer or whatever she does idc gets transformed into a smurf or something,' one user commented.
'Maybe that is the plot, famous singer gets turned into a smurf?' another user jokingly agreed.
It's true that the marketing for Smurfs is rather absurd, but it's created some lighthearted, humorous discourse on the internet and certainly got people talking about the new reboot hitting cinemas this week.
