Last year’s Super Bowl ads brought many statements about our country and values. This year, as Tom Brady and the Patriots once again (yawn … can anyone beat them?) sealed the deal, we saw lots of fun, familiar faces.
Super Bowl Commercials 2019: Fewer Social Statements, More Nostalgia
Here’s a little round down of some of the standout ads:
- Bud Light kept its medieval setting going, but with a big twist … gasp! Their jousting ad morphed into something that had Game of Thrones fans—basically, 90 percent of the population—enthralled, as hints of characters from the series turned up. A flame-thrower of a dragon? Yes, all perhaps reminding audience more of the upcoming final season of the show than to crack open a Bud Light.
- In an ad for Stella Artois, Sarah Jessica Parker of Sex and the City fame and Jeff Bridges, The Dude of The Big Lebowski, brought some 90’s nostalgia as they ordered against their signature drinks. An obvious play for Boomer and Gen X hearts, but we’re not complaining.
- Kudos to Olay, the skincare brand, for stepping into the Super Bowl advertising arena. Their silly, spoofy clip had Sarah Michelle Gellar (of I Know What You Did Last Summer and Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame) facing a stereotypical masked intruder—only to wind up the winner with “killer skin.” We like the idea of approaching midlife skincare with humor and without shaming messages about aging—but murderous villains? Hmm.
- Budweiser showed off its commitment to protecting the environment by snagging rights to Bob Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind”— and added some Clydesdales and a cute pooch.
- Amazon, hawking its Alexa assistant, showed us a predictably gruff Harrison Ford, not so thrilled at having the familiar voice infiltrate his home.
All told, the ads weren’t going out there to make social statements like they were last year, but they certainly wanted to appeal to an audience nostalgic for perhaps happier, less divisive times.
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