Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos doesn’t tweet a lot, but on Thursday he was moved to share a new television commercial for Amazon Prime and praise the ad team behind the concept.
The ad, which was just uploaded to YouTube, shows two friends getting together for a cup of tea. One of the men is a priest and the other is an imam. There is no dialogue as the two men are shown hugging hello and chatting. After some time, both men struggle to stand from a seated position and then they hug goodbye.
Moments later, the men are both on their phones using Amazon to order gifts for one another. Watch the ad to see what the gifts were and how the men used them.
Love this TV commercial for Amazon Prime. Very proud of our ad team. https://t.co/E8ceXs4nte
— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) November 17, 2016
The expression of interfaith friendship is clearly meant to strike a nerve, as people in the United States grapple with issues of intolerance and division especially in relation to religion and Muslims and their place in the country in the wake of Donald Trump’s presidential victory. Trump campaigned on a promise to require a national registry for Muslim immigrants.
The Irish Independent newspaper reported that the ad, which is also showing in the U.K. and Germany, is about “selflessness and thinking of other people,” according to Amazon.
A spokesman for the Seattle-based retail giant told The Independent: “Our casting reflects this: the gentleman playing the vicar is a practicing vicar in London, the gentleman playing the imam is a devout Muslim and the principal of a Muslim school. We used an actual church and mosque for our scenes within the places of worship.”
Bezos last tweeted a week ago, when he offered his congratulations to Trump, saying he would give the president-elect his “most open mind” while wishing Trump “great success in his service to the country.”
Earlier on Thursday, Bezos also used Twitter to promote “The Grand Tour,” an Amazon original motoring series starring Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May.
Long wait is over… Clarkson, Hammond, May are back… #TheGrandTour premieres tonight in UK, US, DE, JP. And globally in Dec. pic.twitter.com/dfQjGGuDFW
— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) November 17, 2016
