The Tampa Bay buccaneers beat the kansas city chiefs in this year’s super bowl – but the real winners were the brands Behind these ads.
While TV viewership statistics have not been officially released, it was predicted that the Super Bowl would be the most-watched television program of 2021. Last year’s Super Bowl saw a TV audience of 100 million, with an extra 3 million viewers on streaming services.
Similar viewership was predicted this year, and the pandemic means (hopefully) most viewers were watching at home. It’s been a controversial year for the Super Bowl, where the decision to have a live audience of 25, 000 has been criticized for creating a ‘superspreader’ event.
But the Super Bowl isn’t just for football fans – 11 per cent of viewers say they only watch for the ads, and 53 per cent say the Super Bowl wouldn’t be the same without the ads.
So without further adieu, here are B&T’s top 10 Super Bowl ads for 2021.
Cadillac’s Edgar Scissorhands
To the delight of Gen Z women across the land, Timothee Chalamet and Winona Ryder are the leads in Cadillac’s 2021 campaign. Chalamet stars as ‘Edgar Scissorhands’, Edward Scissorhand’s son (though, perhaps thankfully, Johnny Depp doesn’t make an appearance). The ad is a promotion for Chrysler’s new all-electric LYRIQ car with – as you may have guessed – hands-free steering.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KAlqthD6Gc
M&M’s Dan Levy
The chocolate brand’s ad this year features Schitt’s Creek star and writer Dan Levy in a cameo performance. M&M’s hit the right notes on this, spoofing ‘Karen’s’, ‘mansplaining’ and gender reveal parties in a way that’s genuinely funny rather than pandering. Plus, it’s hard to dislike anything that features Dan Levy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKUcHcizEMc
Verizon’s Samuel L Jackson Being Eaten By A Shark
Perhaps something of a dark horse in the ad lineup, Verizon’s ad for their 5G depicts Samuel L Jackson in video game avatar giving a speech to a crowd of other video game avatars, before being eaten by a shark/dinosaur thing ridden by footballer Juju Smith-Schuster. This one gets bonus points for being computer-animated, and therefore, actually COVID safe!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZviqRMYzHc
Drake From State Farm
Jake from State Farm has been a mainstay of American memery for many years. This ad features quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers with the eponymous ‘Jake’ discussing potential stand-ins for the ad. Drake takes a starring role, and keep your eye out for a delightful Paul Rudd cameo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvpq2OjmJvg
Will Ferrell Hates Norway
Embracing his inner anti-Norway activist, Will Ferell enlists the help of fellow comedians Awkafina and Kenan Thompson to promote General Motors’ ad, which focuses on electric vehicles.
Doritos’ Flat Matthew McConaughey
In one of the Super Bowl’s slightly more bizarre features, a two dimensional, sleep-paralysis-demon-esque Matthew McConaughey struggles through his day until he discovers a pack of 3D Doritos. While B&T are fans, the internet at large is slightly more divided.
Sexy Alexa
Michael B. Jordan. Need we say more?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KreKbHwCilY
Bud Light
Brands this year had a choice – either focus on the pandemic or ignore it completely. Bud Light’s Seltzer Lemonade campaign addresses the struggles of 2020 with humor and stands out from other “wow, last year was bad” ads.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6CVKs77X74
Huggies Cute Babies
What is the Super Bowl without at least one adorable baby slot? In Huggies’ latest, they win for cuteness factor and for humour. In the ad, the pictures of newborns were all babies that were born that morning, in a true masterpiece of logistics that saw Huggies collaborate with expecting parents. A definite 10/10.
Reddit’s 5 Second Ad
In a frankly brilliant move, social media site Reddit ‘hijacked’ the Super Bowl with a 5-second ad, which seemed to appear in the middle of a car ad. With reference to last week’s GameStop saga, the ad reads, ‘one thing we learned from our communities last week is that underdogs can accomplish just about anything when they come together’. Well played, Reddit.
Reddit just CRASHED the #SuperBowl with a 5 SECONDS commercial! Super smart. 📺💥 #SBLV pic.twitter.com/M20okrHCfc
— Matthieu Lamoureux Etienne (@LLLLITL) February 8, 2021
And now, drumroll please…the worst ad of 2021 is without a doubt from the oat-milk company, Oatly!
Oatly’s bizarre 30-second ad shows their CEO playing the keyboard in a field of oats while singing “wow, no cow,” the brand’s motto. So bizarre it’s good, or the most annoying thing you’ll see all day? Either way, you’ll have the words “wow, no cow” on loop in your head for at least an hour.
((Inside the Oatly Comms Meeting))
COMMS: ….and that’s how we create category awareness and buzz during the Super Bowl Ad.
CEO: Thanks for that, I was thinking me singing in a field. Good talk everyone.
— Tommy McFLY (@TommyMcFLY) February 8, 2021
https://twitter.com/meatiermcsorley/status/1358576802214543364?s=20
I’m not watching the Super Bowl but half of my timeline is about how bad the Oatly commercial was.
Which means it was very good.
— Austen Allred (@Austen) February 8, 2021
The brand capitalized on the backlash with a run of five hundred limited release shirts, which have already sold out. Maybe Oatly won the Super Bowl after all?
