UK ASA bans Black Ops 7 airport ad for trivialising sexual violence

The Advertising Standards Authority published a ruling on 18 February 2026 banning Activision Blizzard UK Ltd’s live-action “Replacer” airport-security advert for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 from running again in its current form, concluding the spot trivialised sexual violence after nine viewer complaints. The ASA said the humour in the advert was generated by humiliation and an implied threat of painful, non‑consensual penetration, and found that framing such an act as entertaining made the ad irresponsible and offensive.

The ad ran in November 2025 as one of several spots promoting Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and presented a premise that “replacers” were filling in for staff who were “off playing the new Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.” Scenes showed fake airport security staff performing exaggerated checks, with lines reproduced from the commercial including “You’ve been randomly selected to be manhandled – face the wall,” “I’m gonna need you to remove your clothes, everything but the shoes,” “Bite down on this, she’s going in dry,” and the phrase “time for the puppet show.” Actors in the spot displayed a confident and joking demeanour while a female officer put on gloves and a male officer placed a hand-held metal detector in a passenger’s mouth.

Nine complaints argued the advert was “irresponsible and offensive” and trivialised sexual violence; two separate complaints suggested the advert encouraged or condoned drug use. The ASA did not uphold the drug-related complaints, concluding the ad was unlikely to be understood as encouraging or condoning drug use and therefore was not irresponsible on that basis. The authority’s central finding was focused on the sexual-violence element, stating, “Because the ad alluded to non-consensual penetration, and framed it as an entertaining scenario, we considered that the ad trivialised sexual violence and was therefore irresponsible and offensive.”

Activision Blizzard UK Ltd defended the spot as adult-targeted marketing for an 18-rated game, saying the advert targeted adults with a “higher tolerance for irreverent or exaggerated humour” and was restricted to an “ex-kids” timing schedule. The company described the clip as “a deliberately implausible parody” that “depicted a deliberately implausible, parodic scenario that bore no resemblance to real airport security procedures,” had a “comedic tone rather than harm or abuse,” and “contained no explicit or objectifying imagery.” Despite those defenses, the ASA’s ruling prohibits the advert’s further broadcast in its present form in the UK.

Distribution for the spot included YouTube and video-on-demand services, specifically VOD placements on ITV and Channel 5 during the November 2025 campaign window. The ruling arrives against a backdrop of the franchise’s global scale: industry figures cited in campaign context note Microsoft’s 2023 acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $75.4 billion and Call of Duty’s extensive player base, with franchise sales and monthly-user figures used to underline why such adverts attract public attention.

The ASA’s decision echoes prior regulator action against Call of Duty advertising, notably a 2012 daytime ban on a Modern Warfare 3 advertisement for material deemed inappropriate for young children. The current ruling does not state whether broadcasters or platform partners have already removed the spot, nor whether Activision Blizzard UK will edit the creative or appeal the ASA decision; those steps remain to be confirmed by the advertiser and the platforms carrying the advert.

If you think advertisers should rework edgy creatives after the ASA’s 18 February 2026 ban, share this story to push for clearer boundaries in game marketing.