Link to adult website on Mattel's 'Wicked' dolls at center of proposed class action lawsuit

(NEXSTAR) – A mother in South Carolina has filed a class action lawsuit against Mattel over a batch of “Wicked” dolls which featured a link to a pornographic website on the packaging.

In her lawsuit, Holly Ricketson, of Edgefield County, alleges that her daughter visited the link after Ricketson purchased her a “Wicked” doll. Both of them were then “horrified by what they saw,” according to court documents obtained by USA Today and Reuters.

“Plaintiff and consumers did not know, and did not have a reason to know, that the Products purchased would contain access to such an inappropriate web link given that product was advertised for ages 4 years and above,” the lawsuit says.

Ricketson’s lawsuit is seeking at least $5 million on behalf of potential claimants as a result of their “inexcusable” misprint, according to the lawsuit.

The mistake first came to light in early November, after an Indiana man purchased the doll for a relative and found the link to be inappropriate for its intended recipient.

Mattel soon issued an apology, saying the company “deeply” regretted the mistake.

“Mattel was made aware of a misprint on the packaging of the Mattel Wicked collection dolls, primarily sold in the US, which intended to direct consumers to the official WickedMovie.com landing page,” the toy manufacturer said in a statement sent to Nexstar.

Mattel added that it planned to “remedy” the problem, after which some of the unsold dolls were removed from sites including Amazon and Target, the Associated Press reported.

Mattel had previously advised consumers “to discard the product packaging or obscure the link.” The company also said customers could contact Mattel Customer Service for more information.

A representative for Mattel was not immediately available Thursday to comment on the lawsuit.

The film adaptation of “Wicked,” starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, is currently in theaters. The film has earned over $370 million worldwide since its Nov. 22 release, according to Box Office Mojo, a film revenue-tracking website.