Paul Walker was the face of Cool Water for a number of years
Paul Walker was the face of Cool Water for a number of years

Luxury brand company Davidoff has been criticised for continuing to use an advertising campaign starring actor Paul Walker following his death.

Walker, who died aged 40 after being involved in a car crash, was the face of Davidoff's Cool Water cologne and appeared in a number of adverts and billboards to advertise it.

In the UK, a Cool Water advert appeared on TV during the broadcast of the Chelsea vs Southampton football match on Sky Sports One, more than 24 hours after the Fast and Furious star was confirmed to have died.

There are reports similar adverts are still being used on YouTube, to the disgust of social media users.

One Twitter user wrote: "Not sure Davidoff ads featuring Paul Walker should be played today of all days :( #tact."

A second user, Alec Parkinson, added: "Just seen the Davidoff cool water with Paul Walker in it. You'd think they would pull it out of respect" while Pam Chohan said: "Just saw the Davidoff advert with Paul Walker in it. This is such bad taste! What were they thinking? RIP Paul Walker."

Others described the showing of the advert as a "major PR plunder" while the company was also accused of being insensitive for not completely pulling the ad.

It is not known whether Davidoff will be removing the adverts from screens or from their website. The company paid tribute to Walker following his death, saying how they were "saddened" to hear of his passing.

A spokesperson said: "As the face of Davidoff Cool Water, Paul contributed to the National Geographic 'Love the Ocean' campaign, whose mission is to protect the ocean. His talent, generosity and passion for giving back was admirable. We send our deepest and most sincere condolences to Paul's family, friends, and fans around the world."

Walker was killed along with his friend and business partner Roger Rodas when the red Porsche Carrera GT they were driving crashed into a pole and tree on 30th November.

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