"People who alter or destroy works of art, and our cultural heritage, for profit or as an exercise of power are barbarians ..."

- George Lucas (who would go on to alter and destroy works of art)

Since their launch, the Coca-Cola Christmas trucks have been an integral part of the holiday season worldwide. The trilogy of spots they debuted in, released between 1995 and 1999 were (and still are) design classics, produced by the same people who created the special effects in the Star Wars series...

This year however, Coke seems to have failed to read the room.

Last year, they released a unique take on the spot utilising generative AI, a very hot topic in recent years due to the morally grey nature of how big companies had been using it, replacing roles that in years past have been dominated by humans.

Thanks to a growing counter-culture against AI that if memory serves may have been started (or at least escalated) by the SAG-AFTRA strike two years ago, the ad backfired terrifically, causing massive negative pushback against the company, though I'm not sure if it caused any dent in sales.

It particularly broke my heart, as I've been a staunch supporter of the campaign for almost my entire life. Aside from last year I've attended every single Coca-Cola truck tour for over 10 years, watched and rewatched the original three commercials and their many regional edits and collected toy models of the truck in its various iterations over the years. (One thing I've always wanted is one of those RC models of the lorry...)

What I want from this petition is (as the title suggests) for Coca-Cola to pull their AI-generated Christmas advert from the airwaves and return the original 60-second 1995, 1997 or 1999 commercials to broadcast television. I have nothing against people who use AI, and I think it can work in the right scenarios, but tampering with something I, and many people across the world hold dear is crossing a line. I also think Mr. Pratik Thakar, the man who authorised this artificial atrocity, should be removed from the company and the AI division wound down.

Taking criticism like this only has benefits. After changing the lead character's design thanks to the massive rebellion against it, Paramount's Sonic the Hedgehog film franchise has raked in over $1 billion US dollars in cinemas. Imagine the positive press Coke could get if they listened to my plea!

I'm honestly not asking for much here. Just reinstate the ads (and maybe fire the guy who let the AI blunder happen) and move on. If AI is absolutely necessary to include, I suggest using it to upscale the existing tapes to a higher resolution, so they can look their absolute greatest for their return. The AI ad especially hurts this year because it's been thirty years since the Coca-Cola trucks debuted, and this monstrosity is how they celebrate?! SHAMEFUL.

...Sorry, got a bit off-track there. You can support my campaign by:

- Boycotting Coca-Cola products (Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Fanta, Sprite, etc)

- Posting about the Original HAC Trilogy wherever you can with the hashtag 'not my coke trucks'

- Blasting Coca-Cola with emails about the Original Trilogy

Because nothing will ever light up Christmas like the Original Holidays Are Coming Trilogy!