Let’s be honest – at least a quarter of the Super Bowl’s entertainment value is found in the commercials.
Come Sunday, they’ll broadcast in all their glory for what’s likely to be more than 110 million viewers. With the average price tag for a 30-second spot running around $4.5-5 million, you know most will be good (or at least memorable).
As always, it will be interesting to see which spots turn out to be major fails (and a total waste of money). Drake’s spot for T-Mobile – which parodies his “Hotline Bling” video – is already getting completely butchered, for example.
In advance of the big game, some brands have released teasers while others have released entire commercials.
In no particular order, here are 8 commercials that are already winning:
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1. Budweiser – “Simply Put.”
In Budweiser’s newest, perhaps boldest Super Bowl commercial, Dame Helen tells it like it is when she calls drunk drivers “short-sighted and utterly useless.” The spot, “Simply Put,” urges beer drinkers to take personal responsibility for not drinking and driving, using a straightforward, unorthodox tone that is typically absent in PSAs.
2. Bud Light – “The Bud Light Party.”
This year’s Bud Light commercial sees Amy Schumer and Seth Rogen as they Spanx-up for “The Bud Light Party” in a far-from-glamorous but very relatable way. This means shots of Schumer plucking her eyebrows, Rogan’s hairy back, and the all-too-real pantyhose struggle.
3. Hyundai – “Ryanville.”
Anyone who has a thing for our very own homegrown hottie Ryan Reynolds will appreciate Hyundai’s Super Bowl ad. In the spot, two women cruise around in a 2017 Hyundai Elantra through “Ryanville,” realizing that every man in town is Ryan Reynolds. As an added bonus, Salt-N-Pepa’s “Whatta Man” plays in the background.
4. Mini USA – “#DefyLabels.”
In one of the more subtly progressive spots, Serena Williams, Harvey Keitel, Tony Hawk, Abby Wambach, and other big names unite to defy labels with the new Mini Clubman car. It identifies labels associated with the car, in a clear reference to the stereotypes and labels that persist in society as a whole.
5. Axe – “Find Your Magic”
This one’s for the beard lovers and the nerds alike. Axe’s “Find Your Magic” spot encourages men of all looks and walks of life that the most attractive man he can be is himself and to find what exactly makes him who he is, then work on it.
6. NFL – “Super Bowl Babies”
The NFL’s “Super Bowl Babies” spot gives Seal’s “Kiss From a Rose” a football spin, and features people (including adorable babies) who were born 9 months after the Super Bowl. As it points out, winning cities experience a rise in births following the Super Bowl.
7. Colgate “#EveryDropCounts.”
Colgate is another brand to take a PSA route this year, using the opportunity to educate viewers on the waste of water with “Every Drop Counts.” The spot encourages users not to waste water– up to four gallons, to be exact– while brushing their teeth.
8. Heinz
– “Wiener Stampede.”
It wouldn’t be a proper Super Bowl commercial run without a spot full of dogs. With a major “aw” factor, Heinz relies on the cuteness of little dachshunds to sell ketchup (an entire family of ketchup, that is).
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