Wisconsin appliance manufacturer Kohler has set a lofty goal for itself. It wants to make it OK to look cool while sitting on the toilet. In an ad parody of Apple’s 1984 commercial, Saturday Night Live guest host Benedict Cumberbatch demonstrates how to exude effortless style on the new Koohl Toilet (yes, that’s the correct spelling).
“There is only one approved way to sit on the toilet,” an authority figure bellows from a giant screen. “It has been designed to make you look stupid and feel foolish. It is against regulation to look cool or feel confident on the toilet. This is the way it has always been and must always be.”
A crowd dressed like neat conformists sit attentively on rows of toilets in front of the screen, until Cumberbatch, dressed as Neo from The Matrix, struts into the room. With a sledgehammer, he breaks open a large metal box to reveal the Koohl Toilet.
Cumberbatch mounts the futuristic toilet as “Money for Nothing” by Dire Straits plays in the background.
“Introducing the Koohl Toilet by Kohler,” a woman’s voice announces. “A sleek reverse-bowl toilet that you sit on the Koohl way, backwards with your arms casually draped over the top.”
On Tuesday, Kohler released an ad in response to the spoof featuring President and CEO David Kohler sitting backwards on a black toilet akin to the fake model Cumberbatch straddled on SNL. Kohler also released a statement in which Elizabeth Brady, Kohler’s Vice President of Brand Management, says the company was excited to find out about the spoof.
“The Saturday Night Live KOHLER toilet commercial was purely organic and a pleasant surprise. We were flattered, enjoyed the satire and have received a lot of positive comments,” Brady said.
Watch the fake ad for yourself, and try not to feel foolish next time you perch on an average toilet.
