Bud Light and Nike face conservative backlash over partnerships with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney

Last week, US rockstar Kid Rock posted a video of himself on Twitter wearing a MAGA hat and shooting a stack of Bud Light cases with an assault rifle.

What inspired the now-firmly middle aged Rock to waste bullets on a box of beer cans? The fact that Bud Light’s parent company Anheuser-Busch had sent US transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney a can of beer with her face on it.

The Mulvaney-Bud Light fiasco has become the latest flashpoint in the US culture wars, igniting conservative hatred on and offline against both Mulvaney and Anheuser-Busch over their partnership.

Another brand partnership between Mulvaney and Nike has also drawn criticism – from both sides of the Atlantic – as British former Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies called for a boycott of Nike products over what she called a “kick in the teeth”.

New to the story? Euronews Culture is here to break it down for you.

For those who aren’t chronically online or musical theatre nerds, this may be the first time you’ve ever even heard of Mulvaney.

The 26-year-old transgender actress first became known for her role as Elder White in the Broadway musical “The Book of Mormon,” but more recently her popularity exploded on TikTok as she chronicled her transition journey in a series called “365 Days of Girlhood”. 

Mulvaney – who uses she/they pronouns – now has 10.8 million followers on the app.

Mulvaney posted a video on Instagram on 2 April promoting a contest for Bud Light with the hashtag #budlightpartner. In the video, they also showed off commemorative cans the brand had sent her with her face on them, celebrating their “365 Days of Girlhood” series.

A post shared by Dylan Mulvaney (@dylanmulvaney)

The backlash was swift, with anti-trans and right-wing groups in the US