'Peloton wife' speaks out amid backlash to TV commercial

The actress who starred in a controversial Peloton bike ad has spoken about the backlash to the commercial, joking it was her face that was "the problem".

Monica Ruiz, or 'Peleton wife' as she's become known online, spoke the US Today Show about how she dealt amid the wave of negative feedback that followed the ad's release.

"I kept feeling like there were two camps. Some people thought that it was a really big deal, and other people thought it was no big deal," she explained.

"So I was like, 'Maybe I should just wait for it to blow over and then it won't seem like I'm trying to keep myself in the press and in the news.'

"When it didn't blow over and people started answering for me... I was like, 'Okay, I'll just let everyone know I'm fine. I'm okay, I'm not in a rehab for mental health anywhere.'"

In the ad, Ruiz's character receives the US$2500 stationary bike for Christmas from her husband.

She then films herself using the bike every day -- getting up early to train and filming herself rushing through the door to use it after work -- throughout the year, before watching the video with her husband.

"A year ago, I didn't realise how much this would change me," she says in the clip.

Social media blew up, with many claiming the ad was 'sexist' as the husband seemingly chose to give his wife the exercise bike without consulting with her.

Others said it was problematic for people with body image issues, as it showed an already thin woman training every day for a year and claiming that it had changed her.

The rumour mill then began spinning with claims the 'Peleton wife' actress had been checked into rehab on mental health grounds, which is what prompted Ruiz to speak up.

When asked what side she was on, or whether she thought there was anything wrong with the commercial, Ruiz responded in good spirits.

"I mean, honestly, I think it was just my face. It was my fault. My eyebrows looked, like, worried, I guess?" she laughed.

"I'm telling you, it was my face that was the problem."

However, it was Ruiz who had the last laugh, as she was immediately contacted by the management of Ryan Reynolds' gin company, asking her to star in an ad responding to the backlash.

While Ruiz was initially apprehensive about making fun of Peloton, she eventually agreed to be in the tongue-in-cheek ad, which shows her at a bar throwing back martinis made with Reynolds' gin.

To add extra excitement to her life, Today then organised for Ruiz to meet Reynolds for the first time, bringing him out during her interview.

The Deadpool star explained his creative reasoning for having Ruiz star in his commercial.

"We love acknowledging and playing with the cultural landscape and we thought this was a great opportunity. Everything is sort of divisive these days — one camp here, one camp there," he said.

"But we had this thought that we could do this ad without contributing to that divide, without vilifying anybody, just commenting on both the person and the actress in the ad all at once.

"So for us it seemed like a no-brainer, and it was a lot of fun to do, and it was a rush — I mean, we did this thing in 36 hours."

Ruiz felt like she "was in an alternate universe" on meeting Reynolds, and explained to the Today panel that she hoped people would let it go and just see her "as an actress" now.

"I hope people can remember that I'm not actually the Peloton lady and let me work other jobs," she said.