Paramount Apologizes for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 9/11 Snafu

The film studio Paramount has issued an apology after deleting a controversial tweet aimed at advertising the September 11 Australian release of the latest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film.

From Twitter handle @ParamountAU, the studio tweeted on Tuesday a picture of the movie poster, which features the turtles falling from an exploding building, The Hollywood Reporter reports.

The accompanying text read: “Check out the official poster for #TMNT in cinemas September 11!”

Though apparently unintentional, the combination of imagery and release date predictably elicited outrage online, for evoking the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, during which desperate victims were seen on camera leaping from the burning World Trade Center.

The tweet was quickly deleted but preserved online.

“We are deeply sorry to have used that artwork for the marketing materials promoting the September 11 opening in Australia,” Paramount Australia said in a statement. “Combining that image and date was a mistake. We intended no offense and have taken immediate action to discontinue its use.”