Emoji Movie Handmaid's Tale
The spoof image from The Emoji Movie account. Sony Pictures

You'd think a movie about emojis would be clued up enough about social media to not get into hot water with an ill-advised tweet, but you'd also assume a major film studio would never greenlight a big-budget animated motion picture about emojis in the first place.

The Emoji Movie arrives in cinemas on 4 August so the film's marketing machine is working overtime trying to drum up positive buzz about the film starring James Corden, Anna Faris and Sir Patrick Stewart as the poop emoji.

Earlier this week, the film's Twitter account tweeted out an image spoofing Hulu's critically-acclaimed TV series The Handmaid's Tale, but quickly deleted it after an online backlash.

The series is an adaptation of the 1985 novel about a future vision of the US ruled by a totalitarian regime that treats women as property and forces what few fertile women remain to become sex slaves.

So, probably not the best TV series to make light of with emojis.

A screenshot of the tweet was shared online after the original was deleted, preserving it as people rallied to criticise the marketing tactic.

"Missed the mark on this one by a long shot," wrote one user. "Are we supposed to think of that emoji in servitude, being raped and forced to have babies?"

Another user said: "So does it make you happy to mock the suffering of women? just want to be clear."

Other users suggested the marketing team could spoof Schindler's List or Triumph of the Will next or expressed how they'd be refusing to take their children to see the film when it's released.