Chris Pratt works out to get in shape to tout Michelob Ultra. Bill Hader takes a break on set to snack on some Pringles.
This year’s Super Bowl advertisers are minding their manners. They’re trying hard to steer clear of everything from politics to the (hash)MeToo movement with lightly humorous ads that don’t offend.
The goal is to capture the attention of the 111 million-plus viewers expected to tune in Sunday when the Philadelphia Eagles take on the New England Patriots. Thirty-second slots are going for more than $5 million for airtime alone.
Last year http://www.detroitlionsteamonline.com/jahlani-tavai-jersey , ads that tackled political issues fell flat, like an 84 Lumber ad about immigration. And some thought the recent Grammy Awards’ low ratings were because the show contained too many political moments, such as Hillary Clinton reading from the Trump biography ”Fire and Fury.”
People are in the mood for ”political-free entertainment,” said Kim Whitler, a marketing professor at the University of Virginia.
Several ads will be taking a light-humor approach with mostly male celebrities. PepsiCo brands Doritos Blaze and Mountain Dew Ice are showcased in two 30-second linked spots showing Morgan Freeman and Peter Dinklage in a lip-sync rap battle.
In a Pringles ad , Bill Hader has a snack on set and introduces a made-up practice dubbed ”flavor stacking,” in which he mixes and matches different Pringles varieties. M&Ms enlisted Danny DeVito to embody what happens when a red M&M becomes a person after wishing on a lucky penny.
Keanu Reeves surfs on his motorcycle through the desert in an ad for Squarespace. Chris Elliott lives in a bio dome to tout avocados from Mexico, while ”Stranger Things” star David Harbour shows up in Tide’s commercial.
”They’re light hearted and good natured,” Whitler said. ”That’s on target with the mood of the country.”
”We’re exposed to so much constant negativity,” said Andy Goeler, a marketing executive at Bud Light. ”Delivering something just light hearted and fun is the root at what beer is all about.” The brand’s two spots showcase a mythical kingdom a la ”Game of Thrones” centered on Bud Light and the catchphrase ”Dilly Dilly.”
Amazon’s 90-second fourth-quarter ad stars a bevy of celebrities who sub for the voice of Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant: singer Cardi B, actress Rebel Wilson, star chef Gordon Ramsey and even actor Anthony Hopkins putting a Hannibal Lector spin on things. Leading up to the halftime show, Pepsi’s ad references past celebrities who have appeared in Pepsi Super Bowl ads: Britney Spears http://www.houstontexansteamonline.com/kahale-warring-jersey , Michael Jackson, Cindy Crawford and others.
Nonetheless, two Super Bowl ads are bucking the trend and sidling up to political issues, however obliquely.
Coca-Cola’s anthemic 60-second ad features varieties of Coke, from Coke Zero to the stevia-flavored Coke Life, quaffed by women, men and a person who uses the ”they” pronoun.
”There’s a Coke for he, and she and her and me and them,” a voiceover states.
Coca-Cola executives say the ad highlights the diversity the company has always used in its advertising, adding that they consulted African-American and LGBTQ groups among its own employees. A biracial couple and a person in a wheelchair also appear in the spot.
”We want to celebrate all the people that make up the world,” Coca-Cola executive Brynn Bardacke said. ”We don’t want to exclude anyone.”
On the other hand, WeatherTech, which makes car mats and other interior car products, has a staunchly pro-American approach in its ad http://www.indianapoliscoltsteamonline.com/bobby-okereke-jersey , which shows the construction of a factory that opened late last year.
”At WeatherTech, we built our factory right here in America,” the ad’s text reads. ”Isn’t that the way it is supposed to be?”
It’s the fifth year WeatherTech has advertised in the Super Bowl touting its all-American operations. Founder and CEO David MacNeil said his ad doesn’t have typical Super Bowl accoutrements – ”no ponies, no puppies, no pretty girls” – but said it’s straight to the point about its message.
”Isn’t it just logical to build your own factory in your own country so your own fellow citizens can have jobs?” he said. He said he doesn’t believe the ad might be divisive. ”It wouldn’t occur to me that I could offend anyone by supporting my own country,” he said.
While the majority of advertisers release their ads ahead of time to try to drum up publicity, there are some holdouts. Fiat Chrysler usually appears during the game without advance warning. Other advertisers that have remained mum about their plans so far include E-Trade and Monster Products.
”It may be that advertisers with risky ads are waiting for the game, hoping to protect the surprise and break through the clutter,” said Tim Calkins, a marketing professor at Northwestern University.
J.J. Watt, Greg Olsen and Benjamin Watson are finalists for the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year award.
The recipient of the award that recognizes a player’s contribution in his community and to society in general will be revealed on Feb. 3 at NFL Honors, when The Associated Press announces its individual NFL awards.
His fundraising did a whole lot more, bringing in an incredible $37 million in 19 days. Watt has dedicated himself to finding organizations that will apply the funds in a way he has promised both donors and victims of the storm.
”For me, this nomination is about so much more than one man,” Watt tells The Associated Press. ”It’s about the hundreds of thousands of people who helped donate to those who went through an extremely difficult time and rose above it all.
”I also know this is about honoring the city and its people.”
Watt says he noticed something special evolving from his involvement in the fundraising efforts.
”I learned how much good there is in the world, how humanity steps up to the plate when they see fellow humans going through difficult times,” he says. ”From my high school and from kids with their lemonade stands … to seeing people putting aside any differences and rivalries and helping out … and how they wanted to donate to be good people and help their fellow humans. It shows how much good light there is in the world.”
Carolina tight end Olsen, who just finished his 11th pro season, has put together two initiatives, one to fight breast cancer, the other to help youngsters with a congenital heart defect.
Olsen’s mother is a breast cancer survivor, and in 2009 he founded Receptions for Research: The Greg Olsen Foundation. The Foundation’s ”Receiving Hope” focuses on cancer research and education programming.
In early 2013, Greg and his wife Kara founded the HEARTest Yard Fund after a routine examination of their unborn son, T.J., revealed the infant had Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS). It’s a family service program administered in conjunction with Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte.
”We meet with the hospital staff and the nurses and doctors and go into these homes http://www.jacksonvillejaguarsteamonline.com/gardner-minshew-ii-jersey ,” Olsen explains. ”Just to see and hear the families and have them relay the stories about this program and … what the lives of these families would be like without our program. To hear how it is helping their family life and family dynamic is something far beyond what we imagined.
”It’s been fun watching it grow and have such an impact.”
Baltimore tight end Watson, a 14-year pro, assists countless people through his charitable arm, the One More Foundation.
Most recently, One More partnered with the International Justice Mission (IJM), the world’s largest international anti-slavery organization working to combat human trafficking, modern day slavery and other forms of violence against the poor. Benjamin and his wife, Kirsten, joined the global fight to end the scourge of sex trafficking.
”There are 2 million children worldwide involved in sex traffic and exploitation,” he says. ”This slavery issue is really a big deal that kind of goes on unnoticed and unheralded.
”People want to help, a lot of times people don’t know how. The problems of the world seem so overwhelming that they do not know where to start. We provide people the opportunity to do something for someone.
”Whenever you help somebody, they end up helping you and you learn as much from them as they do from you.”
Olsen broke into the NFL with the Bears. So the Payton legacy is more than a familiar one for him.
”Playing in Chicago for four years, I saw firsthand what the Payton family has meant to the city and the community,” he says. ”I was a teammate with Walter’s son http://www.losangelesramsteamonline.com/darrell-henderson-jersey , Jarrett, at the University of Miami for a year, kept in contact with him. It’s interesting how many parallels there are. They have a great foundation that does a lot of great work.”
The three finalists emphasize that hundreds of their peers are doing similar work, selflessly and without fanfare.
”A lot of guys are doing those things, more than what people know,” Watson notes. ”One thing I always wanted to do is take advantage of the opportunities as long as I play and after I play.
”We obviously have some influence. Yes, as NFL players … we have the ability to be more visible. Everybody has a sphere of influence they can affect positively, whether it is 10 people or 10,000 people. I want to use it to help people and advocate for people whenever I can, to be someone who stands for what is just and kind and right.”