10 ads that stood out during Super Bowl 52
NEW YORK (AP) — It’s Super Bowl ad time again. Advertisers of all stripes are vying for the attention of the 111 million viewers expected to tune in. The goal is to be the most-talked about ad over the water cooler — or Slack chatroom — come Monday morning.
From Steven Tyler de-aging for Kia to Amazon’s imagining of different voices for Alexa, here are 10 ads that are likely to be talked about. And if you’re not interested in tuning it to watch the big game on Sunday, you can stream all of these ads ahead of time.
___
Amazon
The internet giant’s founder, Jeff Bezos, stars in this 90-second comedic ad showing different celebrities including chef Gordon Ramsay, actress Rebel Wilson, singer Cardi B and actor Anthony Hopkins subbing in for the voice of Amazon’s voice assistant Alexa.
___
Budweiser
Anheuser-Busch dispenses with its usual Clydesdales and puppies and instead goes with a 60-second ad that depicts, to the tune of “Stand By Me,” the company’s program to provide water to areas in need.
https://youtu.be/CxGUmtRLm5g
___
Bud Light
The beer brand’s recent ads have centered on a Game of Thrones-like universe that uses the meaningless-but-catchy phrase “Dilly Dilly.” Now, in a 60-second ad running in the second quarter, the brand introduces “Bud Knight,” a heroic character who is ambivalent about helping out in a battle.
https://youtu.be/Zr4md5OqL60
___
Coca-Cola
The soda maker strives to include everyone in its 60-second ad: people of different ethnicities, someone in a wheelchair and a person who uses the they/them pronoun are all shot at various locations in Mexico clutching or drinking different varieties of Coke.
https://youtu.be/OPi9nTE70aA
___
Doritos & Mountain Dew
The two Pepsico brands have linked spots that show a lip-sync battle between Peter Dinklage, who lip syncs a Busta Rhymes song as a representative for Doritos Blaze, and Morgan Freeman, who lip syncs a song by Missy Elliott for Mountain Dew Ice.
https://youtu.be/4eKYR_iL5eU
___
Febreze
Procter & Gamble’s air freshener tackles toilet humor with a 30-second ad airing in the second quarter. It purports to be a documentary about Dave, whose “bleep don’t stink.” The kicker: Since your Super Bowl party guests are a bunch of not-Daves, you might want to take other precautions against bathroom odor.
https://youtu.be/9NliY5tPp2k
___
Kia
The automaker has enlisted Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler (who last popped up in a Skittles Super Bowl ad two years ago) to promote its Stinger sports car. In the ad, he drives backward so fast that he gets younger thanks to computer-generated magic. In a nod to advertising tropes, the ad also contains a subliminal message if you watch it backward; Kia helpfully provides this version online.
https://youtu.be/0YVbVXOjJv4
___
Michelob Ultra
The Anheuser-Busch light beer brand has 30-second ads in the second and fourth quarters starring Chris Pratt. In one he runs and does yoga while singing along to “I Like Beer,” a remake of a country song from the 1970s.
https://youtu.be/MQOvMnRK7Z8
___
Pepsi
The soda maker calls back to its past Super Bowl advertising efforts with Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, Celtics basketball player Kyrie Irving and Cindy Crawford in a 30-second ad airing right before the Justin Timberlake halftime show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlhQkTvDoho&feature=youtu.be
___
WeatherTech
The maker of car floor mats shows footage of its new factory being built in a 30-second ad in the first half of the game. On-screen text reads: “At WeatherTech, we built our new factory right here in America. Isn’t that the way it’s supposed to be?” It’s the fifth consecutive year WeatherTech has advertised during the Super Bowl that all of its operations are in the United States.