The Cleveland Cavaliers have apologized for a promotional video aired during their match up against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, which many say makes light of domestic violence.

Cleveland Cavaliers Air Ad With Domestic Violence During Game

The video in question was shown during halftime at Game 2 and promoted the Cavalier’s “All In” slogan. In the ad, which parodies a United Healthcare commercial, a couple begins dancing when “Time of My Life” (the Dirty Dancing song) comes on. Just as the famous Dirty Dancing lift comes up, the woman takes off her apron (she was cooking dinner while he watched the basketball game) to reveal she’s wearing a Bulls t-shirt! She runs to the man, wearing Cavalier duds, and he lifts her up only to throw her right back down.

“Bulls fan! I didn’t know you were a Bulls fan! Can’t believe she’s a Bulls fan,” the man says while walking away, leaving his girlfriend groaning in pain on the floor.

The one-minute video ends with the couple now sitting on the couch. The girlfriend has changed out of her offensive Bulls t-shirt into a Cavalier’s shirt and holds a huge bag of ice to her head. “I thought you were all in,” he says. “Well, I’m all in now,” she responds.

The cringe-worthy clip upset fans both in the stands and at home. Critics were quick to point out that the ad appears to make a joke out of domestic violence, and the Cavaliers apologized swiftly the following day.

“While the video was not intended to be offensive, it was a mistake to include content that made light of domestic violence. Domestic violence is a very serious matter and has no place in a parody video that plays in an entertainment venue. We sincerely apologize to those who have been affected by domestic violence for the obviously negative feelings caused by being exposed to this insensitive video,” reads their official statement.

The Cavaliers have no plans of taking any action against those responsible for the ad; however, members of their marketing team met early on Thursday to go through the step by step process that created the video and then gave it the green light to air during the game so as to avoid similar missteps in the future.

Article by Olivia Truffaut-Wong

Olivia Truffaut-Wong was born and raised in Berkeley, California, where she developed her love of all things entertainment. After moving to New York City to earn her degree in Film Studies, she stayed on the East Coast to follow her passion and become an entertainment writer. She lives on a diet of television, movies and food.