Apple debuted a new iPhone last week, but that’s not what’s got people talking. No, what’s got people talking is a five-minute video shown during the company’s annual keynote event that features a disdainful and domineering Mother Nature (played by actress Octavia Spencer) berating Apple’s executive team about their progress toward saving the planet.
To many of the Apple faithful, the ad is a triumph. To others, it’s “the cringiest ad ever” and a prime example of greenwashing.
Who is right? Let’s take a look.
Below: Apple’s “Mother Nature” ad, created in-house and directed by Rhys Thomas of Stink Films (don’t tell me the universe doesn’t have a sense of humor).
Mother Nature versus Apple
The ad opens with an Apple employee waddling (somewhat) hurriedly down the halls of the company’s high-tech headquarters in Cupertino, California. She’s headed to a conference room filled with jittery Apple executives, including CEO Tim Cook, who is muttering nervously to himself as he rehearses an introduction to someone.
Away in the distance, thunder peals, scaring a flock of birds into the sky. Inside the conference room, drinkware clinks as the building shakes and everyone looks at each other with wide eyes.
Just then, a ladybug lands on the rim of a water glass and a voice says:
“I hope we didn’t keep you waiting.”
It’s Mother Nature — a big, brash Black woman with a bad-ass attitude — and her submissive male assistant taking their seats at the head of the table.
“Mother Nature, welcome to Apple,” Cook responds woodenly. “How — how was the weather getting in?” he stammers.
Thunder rumbles again as Mother Nature cocks her head imperiously and says, “The weather was however I wanted it to be.” Thus setting the acerbic and off-putting tone for the rest of the ad while ironically undermining the very idea of man-made climate change.
“Let’s cut to the chase,” says Mother Nature. “In 2020, you promised to bring Apple’s entire carbon footprint to zero by 2030. Henry David Thoreau over here,” she says, nodding toward Cook, “said we have a profound opportunity to build a more sustainable future for the planet we share.”
The assistant notes dryly that their ten-o’clock client said the same thing and Mother Nature throws down the gauntlet.
“All right. This is my third corporate responsibility gig today, so who wants to disappoint me first?”
One by one, Apple employees reel off a list of the company’s climate initiatives, such as eliminating plastic from packaging, using recycled aluminum in many products, using “clean electricity,” and carbon-neutral offices.
But then, something amazing happens: the writing goes completely off the rails, revealing everyone involved in this high-profile production to be a willing mind-control victim who hasn’t the first clue about climate science.
It happens when no less than Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives, says to Mother Nature in deadly earnestness, “Our aim is to permanently remove carbon from the atmosphere.”
Excuse me?
I beg your pardon, Ms. Jackson, but does the term “carbon-based life form” mean anything to you?
In case you weren’t aware, Earth is a carbon-based planet. That means that all life on Earth is made of carbon and literally requires carbon to survive.
(“It’s what plants crave,” to borrow a line from the sadly prescient film Idiocracy.)
If by some unimaginable and unprecedented disaster all carbon was removed from Earth’s atmosphere, all living things — you, me, your family, friends, pets, and house plants — would die. The world as we know it would completely cease to exist.
But there it is, presented loudly and proudly by one of the world’s top tech companies in full-color HD: “Our aim is to permanently remove carbon from the atmosphere.”
(And here I thought Apple employees were supposed to be geniuses.)
At any rate, Mother Nature seems suitably impressed with Apple’s progress and its executives’ shocking ignorance. Cook delivers a short closing speech about how the company has innovated and retooled almost every part of its process to reduce its impact on the planet, and then the VP of Climate Change Confusion chimes in one last time to — what else? — pimp the new Apple Watch.
Cook promises Mother Nature that “by 2030, all Apple products will have a net-zero climate impact” and the two share an awkward staredown (how the heck can Cook screw up a staredown?) before Mother Nature says, “OK! Good! See you next year” and “Don’t disappoint your mother!” as she departs.
The Internet mocks Apple’s ‘Mother Nature’ ad
Public blowback to the video was swift and scathing, with Apple disabling comments to its YouTube video soon after it was posted. Following is a small sampling of comments from around the web:
“You mass-produce your products in China — one of the world’s biggest polluters” 
“Apple’s ‘Mother Nature’ sketch was a complete dud. This is greenwashing but the green is… profit.”
“I see a lot of people in this video exceeding their bodily carbon limits.”
“With the volume off it’s like a silent movie about diversity hires.”
“This Mother Nature skit was the cringiest thing I’ve seen in a while. Clearly Apple is hit by the #WritersStrike as well.”
“We’re reaching levels of corporate cringe previously considered to be impossible.”
“Then stop making new phones every year. Make phones upgradable.”
“If only you believed in innovation as much as you do left-wing tropes. This video is the most embarrassing moment in Apple’s history as a company.”
“I guess ‘carbon neutral’ polls well with rich kids with more money than brains. Imagine thinking a luxury gadget is helping you tweak the weather.”
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Check the replies to Cook’s tweet for more:
At Apple, we believe that climate change is one of the world’s most urgent priorities and we are deeply committed to doing our part. Today we had a special guest—a real force of nature—stop by to check on our progress. pic.twitter.com/neLSEqPmGu
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) September 12, 2023
What Apple’s ‘Mother Nature’ ad gets wrong
Where do I start? The poor writing and acting? The preachy, sanctimonious tone? The totally not settled science of “man-made climate change” and laughably incorrect information about carbon sequestration?
Like so much of today’s advertising, this Apple ad starts with a clever idea that turns sour and unfunny due to the heavy-handed insertion of left-wing ideology and propaganda.
But of course it does. After all, this is the company that stunningly and bravely introduced a “pregnant man” emoji in one of its iPhone updates in 2022.
Should we all just ignore that Apple, one of the many “woke” corporations that has endorsed the Black Lives Matter movement and critical race theory, continues to use slave labor in China to make its products?
Or the huge and continued impact of the extractive minerals and metals industries that anchor Apple’s supply chain?
Or the wasteful and unnecessary annual upgrade cycles that Apple has popularized throughout the industry with its business model of “planned obsolescence”?
Or that CO2 levels in the atmosphere have been many, many times higher than they are today at several times in Earth’s history, including the Jurassic Period, the Paleozoic Era during the Cambrian Period, and more (despite the fact that no dinosaur ever drove a car)?
How about the fact that many climate scientists believe there is precisely zero correlation between carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere and the surface temperature of Earth?
All right. Now let’s talk about the “angry black woman” stereotype used for Mother Nature.
Instead of portraying Mother Nature as a kind, loving, and nurturing force that perhaps yearns for human beings to become environmentally conscious and responsible stewards of the planet, the brainchildren behind this Apple ad decided to create an angry and ugly character that’s practically unbearable to watch and listen to.
Honestly, it’s amazing to me how quickly ads have come full circle from portraying black people as smart, funny, and benevolent role models (in contrast to their castmates of other races) to turning them into indignant, irascible boors who now actively chew white people’s asses.
On the other hand, I have to hand it to Apple. It’s a pretty smart marketing strategy to tie your brand and all of your product lines to the idea of “saving the planet from man-made climate change” in the minds of young, affluent consumers who are just as clueless about climate science as Apple’s own executives.
Apple’s ‘Mother Nature’ ad: The Cranky Ad Review verdict
In the final analysis, I find Apple’s “Mother Nature” ad to be rancorous and unfunny. Pompous and scolding. Pandering and embarrassing. Misinformed, with a heaping helping of Apple’s trademark hubris.
This is woke capitalism at peak cringe.
Maybe next time, Apple executives should brush up on the science and spare us their hot air.
Cranky Ad Review rating: One self-aggrandizing star out of five.
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Ah yes, the remarkable and sudden appearance of the wise black woman who is in charge. You see them in financial ads, ads for large conglomerates, and virtually every other business out there.
Their intelligence and authority are not to be questioned. The world would simply fall apart, and all money making ventures would fail almost immediately if not for them. That’s not to say that there is not a lot of black women who fill that role, but they are a small percentage of the population.
It certainly is a protected class, Anonymous. Frankly, I’m surprised Apple didn’t write her as a lesbian as well.
Absolutely love her in the movie “Hidden Figures!”
So long as a preponderance of people crave and seek products from the likes of Apple, Disney and other “entertainment” media, Target, the NFL and NBA, yadda, yadda, there will be no improvement. People want the ease, sleazy entertainment, convenience, and perceived sophistication (status) these corporations offer. The problem is people. Unfortunate Misanthropes v Precocious Twits: Advantage: Twits.
The state of our world in a nutshell, SP. Perfectly said!
I am all for doing your part by not contributing to extra garbage & to do your best to make this planet a little better when we leave. However, I do think most of these companies are full of shit. 💁🏻♀️
Agreed on all points, Maryann! Thanks for writing.