Cara Delevingne's X-rated Pepe Jeans ad might not be exactly what you expected

Bad Adz #5 — Notes from the frontlines of cultural co-optation, courtesy of advertising's rogue inside-man, perpetual outsider King Adz.

A cultural high-tide mark has been set. Just like in 1969 when Hunter S. Thompson witnessed the death of the American Dream when the police attacked the students protesting against Vietnam in Chicago, I, too, have just experienced that moment. In the name of research I walked on the wild side and watched the ‘adult’ version of an ad for Pepe Jeans starring uber-model Cara Delevingne with support from a couple of dishy males, would you believe. What I saw was the monumental fusion of the perfume ad with the pointless internet video to produce the most heinous bastard off-spring ever. Banality squared with pretentiousness with a liberal dose of pointlessness mixed in for good measure.

The whole nightmare was filmed in the fountains in front of Somerset house – how street can you get? I know a lot of kids are going to be identifying with that location, that is after they’ve fought their way through the 30-something media scum hogging the café tables and free WiFi for their pointless ‘meetings’. The visual atrocity kicks off with the cast frolicking under the title ‘Made for Mischief’. Cara then kisses a statue. The male fodder jog together through fountains in unison. They all get wet. She puts some sunglasses on the statue (revolutionary), then leans back on one of the blokes as they ride a horse – also a statue – and then does this totally weird rodeo gesture. I’m confused already. The cultural nuances are being laid thick and fast and I just couldn’t keep up decoding them. I had to rewind. One of the chaps then slaps a moody 5-panel cap on the aforementioned statue and the place goes wild. My god this is amazing – such creative use of a statue; such great casting of a globally famous model; a total blast and such a great ROI (return on investment). Then it all cranks up a notch as she shows a bit of side-boob with tat (I did say this was the adult version), messes with the boys in the water – pretending to phone someone up on her fake Vans – and then blows the camera a kiss.

It gets dark, and I don’t mean in the narrative sense. Just when I thought I’d seen it all, it happens: they throw in a skateboard. Why-oh-why the fuck did you have to do that? Cara tries to skate but ends up doing some kind of demented river-dance instead, and almost gets away with it because she is ‘well-fit’. I said almost. At least they didn’t make her do a windmill. The three of them end up in the water and get naked and stuff and then it’s on, I’m like, whoa – adult version, indeed. It’s amazing the level of sex you can get away with in an ad for crap jeans that no one has ever given a toss about as they never bothered to embed themselves in any kind of youth or sub-culture. Okay, so one of the claims I just made above is false, but you’ll just have to watch the ad to find out which one. I’m a cultural sadist. Watching this kind of absolute dross gets to you in the end. I bet it cost way more than £50 to make, which is £50 too much.


Ad

Latest on Huck

Sport

Is the UK ready for a Kabaddi boom?

Kabaddi, Kabaddi, Kabaddi — Watched by over 280 million in India, the breathless contact sport has repeatedly tried to grip British viewers. Ahead of the Kabaddi World Cup being held in Wolverhampton this month, Kyle MacNeill speaks to the gamechangers laying the groundwork for a grassroots scene.

Written by: Kyle MacNeill

Culture

One photographer’s search for her long lost father

Decades apart — Moving to Southern California as a young child, Diana Markosian’s family was torn apart. Finding him years later, her new photobook explores grief, loss and connection.

Written by: Miss Rosen

Culture

As DOGE stutters, all that remains is cringe

Department of Gargantuan Egos — With tensions splintering the American right and contemporary rap’s biggest feud continuing to make headlines, newsletter columnist Emma Garland explains how fragile male egos stand at the core of it all.

Written by: Emma Garland

Culture

Photo essay special: Despite pre-Carnival anxiety, Mardi Gras 2025 was a joyous release for New Orleans

A city celebrates — Following a horrific New Year’s Day terror attack and forecasts for extreme weather, the Louisiana city’s marquee celebration was pre-marked with doubt. But the festival found a city in a jubilant mood, with TBow Bowden there to capture it.

Written by: Isaac Muk

Sport

From his skating past to sculpting present, Arran Gregory revels in the organic

Sensing Earth Space — Having risen to prominence as an affiliate of Wayward Gallery and Slam City Skates, the shredder turned artist creates unique, temporal pieces out of earthly materials. Dorrell Merritt caught up with him to find out more about his creative process.

Written by: Dorrell Merritt

Music

In Bristol, pub singers are keeping an age-old tradition alive

Ballads, backing tracks, beers — Bar closures, karaoke and jukeboxes have eroded a form of live music that was once an evening staple, but on the fringes of the southwest’s biggest city, a committed circuit remains.

Written by: Fred Dodgson

Signup to our newsletter

Sign up to stay informed from the cutting edge of sport, music and counterculture, with personal takes on the state of media and pop culture in your inbox every month from Emma Garland, former Digital Editor of Huck, exclusive interviews, recommendations and more.

Please wait...