As far as #brands go, Netflix is known for being pretty good at social media. The Twitter account in particular regularly interacts with consumers, other brands, and the accounts for their various original (and licensed) television series and movies. So when the account blasted out the following tweet on Tuesday afternoon, no one knew for sure exactly what to make of it.
“Hey babe! New job is good but I miss u a lot,” read the tweet, accompanied by an image of a shirtless guy taking a mirror selfie in track pants. “U miss me???”
hey babe! new job is good but I miss u a lot
u miss me??? pic.twitter.com/NR1CiXqlVk
— Netflix (@netflix) December 10, 2019
Immediate speculation led to people wondering if the Netflix account had been hacked, or if one of the social team forgot to switch accounts. But after the seconds and minutes ticked by without the tweet having been removed, it became quite clear that we were dealing with a bit of the ol’ viral marketing.
Shortly after the tweet went live, Netflix put out a press release for a new reality competition series called The Circle, that reminds you “not to trust everything you see on social media” and in which shirtless bro “Joey” is apparently a contestant on:
Synopsis: In The Circle you never know who you’re playing against as contestants bond, flirt, and plot, all in an effort to earn clout exclusively through a unique social media platform. Everyone’s competing to gain influence and avoid getting voted out. But who’s for real and who’s a catfish? With $100k on the line, what would you do — and who would you be — to win?
Sure, great, fine. But in the meantime, Netflix confused the heck out of a lot of people — all 6.9 million followers and some change, as you can see from some of the amused reactions below.
What’s something you can say during sex and while getting fired for posting to the brand Netflix account instead if your own personal account? https://t.co/dtSUl0mExm
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) December 10, 2019
U good Netflix?
— Satan (@s8n) December 10, 2019
when you forget to switch accounts
— BD (@BrandonDavisBD) December 10, 2019
https://twitter.com/ScottWamplerBMD/status/1204458435112263680
Netflix trynna chill rn https://t.co/zGxrWlY5m4
— Alex Elmslie (@ImAllexx) December 10, 2019
This Netflix intern:
— Ry⛳️🏌🏽 (@lewis_this) December 10, 2019
what are they tweeting lmfaooo
— Avalanche ☃️ (@lanche) December 10, 2019
Is Netflix trying to fuck us? https://t.co/EocxGWE48g
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) December 10, 2019
You can watch the trailer for The Circle, coming to Netflix on January 1, below.