Rod Stewart found himself in hot water after a video of him staging a mock execution drew comparisons to grisly ISIS beheading videos.
In the since-deleted Instagram clip posted by his wife Penny Lancaster, Stewart makes a slashing motion with his hand near the neck of a man who is kneeling on a sand dune. Stewart says the clip — which was shot before his tour stop in Abu Dhabi — was meant to be a Game Of Thrones reference and that fans are misinterpreting his intent.
“From re-enacting the Beatles’ Abbey Road crossing to spontaneously playing out Game Of Thrones, we were simply larking about pre-show,” Stewart said. “Understandably, this has been misinterpreted and I send my deepest apologies to those who have been offended.”
The character of Catelyn Stark famously gets her throat slashed at the Red Wedding in that series. However, given the desert backdrop, it’s easy to see how fans would go to Jihadi John clips before they think of Westeros.
The original post’s caption didn’t mention the slashing at all, focusing instead on the Beatles joke.
“Rod Stewart (leader) band doing a ‘Beatles’ sand dune crossing,” Lancaster wrote.
It’s no cocaine up the bum, but considering that Stewart is 72, this level of controversy will do.
