Norway's Postal Service—natively known as Posten Norge—has a new holiday ad featuring a belligerent Santa that sparked stateside buzz for its apparent dig at Donald Trump.
Wearing a red hat was not the only thing this Santa had in common with the expiring commander-in-chief.
In the Norwegian Post commercial, the cantankerous Santa bemoaned about his delivery method being on the brink of obsolescence.
He said in a therapy session it was no wonder why he felt like an "angry White man."
Posten: Santa: With the advent of online shopping and rapid delivery services, Santa Claus has become increasingly… https://t.co/q9PzUSfHT2— theawesomer (@theawesomer) 1606514852.0
With an apparent nod to Trump's attempt to block funding to the U.S. Postal System ahead of the 2020 presidential election, "Santa" bashed Posten Norge and told his elvish therapist that:
"Expectations have shifted from simple chimney delivery to tracking numbers. "
A montage sequence showed Old Father Christmas telling an aide to angry tweet:
"Digital stamps are FAKE NEWS!"
You can watch the ad in full, here:
Santa was also portrayed as a denier of climate change in a scene in which he dismissed rising temperatures at the North Pole as "completely natural."
In addition to his tantrums, Trump's other past transgressions—including accusations of sexual harassment—were not off limits for parodying.
A manically tweeting Santa wants to 'Make Christmas Great Again' in this Norwegian postal service ad. Sound familia… https://t.co/KaTSLGyT08— Alexandra Jardine (@Alexandra Jardine) 1606327149.0
But the commercial offered redemption in the spirit of the holidays.
In the final shot, Santa appeared to have a change of heart after he saw a bundle of letters addressed to him—presumably from children—and told the postal worker who efficiently handled the delivery, "Merry Christmas."
The ad concluded with a message from Posten Norge.
"We have delivered Christmas presents since 1647, but will never stop reinventing ourselves."
Twitter gave Posten's ad a thumbs up.
Unlike POTUS, Santa does come around at the end in this ad for Norway's postal service! #ads #holidays2020… https://t.co/wjhQNmYIPV— Gabriele 'Gaby' Woodall (@Gabriele 'Gaby' Woodall) 1606350432.0
Santa Claus is a red hat-wearing, Twitter-ranting, climate crisis-denying, self-confessed “angry white man” in a ne… https://t.co/BqEoXzR5Ky— DFaithless1 (@DFaithless1) 1606923087.0
This ad from Norway's Posten for Christmas is on point for 2020, thanks @adage for bringing this to my day. https://t.co/sb1Mhbjyqk— Diana Problem Solver (@Diana Problem Solver) 1606327455.0
"Make Christmas Great Again" by @postennorge is bold, funny and current. When an ad is so well-done you just don't… https://t.co/J7gbqM0BgI— Louise Chow (@Louise Chow) 1606742179.0
One of the best things I’ve seen all year. Way to go, Norway! https://t.co/OZURGvbf2V— Chris Guillebeau (@Chris Guillebeau) 1606536722.0
Makes me want to believe in Santa Claus again if not the post office or Norway’s posten #Vimeo https://t.co/Zws5q4XmC2— jonathan seed (@jonathan seed) 1606520975.0
When it came to lifting our spirits this holiday season, Norway delivered first class.