Two of Britain’s biggest toy retailers said Monday they will not sell a new line of Eminem action figures because the dolls didn’t fit with the retailers’ images, according to Reuters.
“We were offered the Eminem doll but decided not to stock it,” Nicole Lander, a spokesperson for Woolworths, told the news agency. “The visual impact didn’t fit with our family environment and having it around a Barbie doll, for example, didn’t feel right.”
Hamleys, described by Reuters as Britain’s most famous toy retailer, also said it would not stock the controversial rapper’s three different figures. American toy stores were not available for comment.
The dolls will sell for about $10 and will arrive in Britain from the United States this summer. One of the dolls, Slim Shady, comes with the rapper’s favorite stage prop – a chainsaw – and also sports tattoos, including the words “cut here” inked on his neck.
Eminem, whose alleged homophobic and misogynistic lyrics have been the center of controversy since The Marshall Mathers LP was released a year ago, recently performed a sell-out tour of Britain despite protests from gay rights activists.
Woolworths told Reuters it would continue selling Eminem’s Grammy Award-winning albums because they were not visually controversial and are aimed at older shoppers.
