Game of War ft. Kate Uptons Chest

The Game of War commercials that aired most frequently around the time of the Super Bowl, targeting male audiences, star Kate Upton as a queen of some sort, draped in white and shielded by silver armor. Throughout the series of ads she walks through her exploding castle, gives pep talks to men before war, and rides into battle with them. Sounds bad ass right? Sounds like she’s challenging a few stereotypes? Perhaps the character that Upton plays is breaking down barriers, but Upton herself is not. Instead, she is being used as a sex object to catch the attention of boys so that they will be tempted to play a video game.

The commercials are shot through the male gaze. They follow Upton’s breasts in slow motion as she rides her horse or walks through a battlefield. The armor she wears does less to protect her than it does to accentuate her figure. She recites poorly written and poorly delivered dialogue as if the words coming out her mouth don’t matter. In fact, males who commented on the videos on youtube would agree that her lines are unimportant. One comment said, “Kate Upton is someone who should be looked at, not heard.” This shows that she is in those commercials because of her looks. The company decided exploiting her body would be the best way to make a buck.

Although she is supposed to be a strong leader in war, Upton also asks, apparently to random teenage boys, “Will you be my hero?” This reaffirms not only the damsel in distress stereotype, but also the stereotype that men have to be tough, violent, and dominating.

One comment on youtube said, “I don't have a problem with a woman leading an Army. But making her all pretty and shiny while her soldiers look like trash and beat up, it's feminist and really stupid. No man would follow or respect that narcissist c**t.” This ignorant person completely misses the point. These commercials, while they do feature a strong female character, are actually the opposite of feminist. Upton is not “all pretty and shiny” because she thinks shes better than the men, she looks like that because males put her in that commercial for the sole purpose of turning males on. She’s there to be looked at. She’s there to be objectified. She’s there because we live in a society that treats women’s bodies like products to use and sell for entertainment.