The UN has ended its campaign with comic book heroine Wonder Woman, a spokesman says, less than two months after her appointment sparked outrage.
BBC reported that the superhero had been declared an honorary ambassador to promote messages about women’s empowerment and gender-based violence.
The character’s “sexualised” appearance was one element critics seized on to deem the choice inappropriate.
A petition against the selection gathered nearly 45,000 signatures.
The UN did not explain why the project with Wonder Woman, announced in October, would end on Friday.
But spokesman Jeffrey Brez said campaigns using fictional characters often lasted no longer than a few months, Reuters news agency reported.
DC Entertainment, which publishes DC Comics, said it was pleased with the exposure Wonder Woman had brought to the cause.
Warner Bros and DC Entertainment are supporting a year-long campaign by the UN and its children’s agency, Unicef, for gender equality and women’s empowerment.
In the petition against the character’s appointment, opponents said the image she projected was “not culturally encompassing or sensitive”.
“It is alarming that the United Nations would consider using a character with an overtly sexualised image at a time when the headline news in United States and the world is the objectification of women and girls,” it said.