Peloton issues a response to the scene in the season 6 premiere of Billions in which Wags (David Costabile) has a heart attack on a Peloton bike. This scene comes less than two months after a similar scene aired on And Just Like That, the Sex and the City continuation in which Mr. Big (Chris Noth) dies from a heart attack after riding a Peloton bike. Peloton's stock quickly dropped after the scene aired, with Peloton releasing a statement from a cardiologist on the benefits of cycling, as well as an ad narrated by Ryan Reynolds. The ad was shortly pulled after Noth was accused of sexual assault by two women.
Billions follows the world of high finance, with protagonist Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti), a U.S. attorney, trying to prosecute Bobby Axelrod (Damian Lewis), and later Mike Prince (Corey Stoll), for their aggressive tactics in securing high returns. The season 6 premiere features a scene in which Axelrod's right-hand man, Wags, has a minor heart attack while using a Peloton bike, surviving the event. The development was followed by Wags saying "I'm not going out like Mr. Big," in reference to the similar scenes.
Now, Peloton tweets that they did not agree to the series using their brand in the episode. They go on to say they did not provide equipment or know of their brand's use in Billions, unlike And Just Like That, where they knew of the brand's use but not the context of the scene. They also point out that the show itself says that regular cardiovascular exercise leads to longer lives. See the tweet below:
With both scenes being aired so closely together, it's nothing more than a coincidence, given that most shows shoot months in advance. Though the reference to And Just Like That makes it seem like the Billions scene was planned afterwards, the creative team managed to include the line about Mr. Big in post-production, adding it to the scene that was shot last Spring. The producers have said it was too good of an opportunity to pass up.
Though it's not the first time Billions has been accused of plagiarism, the proximity of the two episodes' airing is too close to be anything other than a coincidence. Though Peloton is clearly unhappy about the depictions, the free marketing and discussions of the product are surely worth something to the billion-dollar company. There's no such thing as bad press, and the fact that people are talking about the brand so much is something that the hedge fund managers on Billions would absolutely approve of.
Source: @onepeloton