Given the rough few years he's had lately, it's not surprising Arnold Schwarzenegger might want to be someone else for a while. He's making a habit of it, anyway.
The Governator, who looked hilarious in a Bjorn Borg getup for Bud Light's Super Bowl teaser, dons another disguise in a different video, going undercover as an employee at Gold's Gym in Venice, Calif., to draw attention to his After-School All-Stars program.
Schwarzenegger famously worked out at the same Gold's Gym in his bodybuilding glory days of the '70s. In the new video, Arnold, aka "Howard," is comically awkward as he strolls around the gym, bothering the patrons, many of whom clearly do a double-take.
It's pretty funny stuff, and has gotten well over a million views in its first day on YouTube. It seems a little odd that there's no big reveal at the end, à la Jeff Gordon's Pepsi MAX spot, where Schwarzenegger could take off the disguise and delight everybody. Instead, it just ends. On the upside, Gold's might have a new tagline thanks to Arnold's ad-libbing.
Say it with me, in Arnold-speak: "This is Gold's Gym. It's not a baby gym."
Planet Fitness is back with the latest spot in its campaign against "gymtimidation."
This time, we peek in on an unnamed competitor, where an insanely pumped-up instructor is leading a class of "Pilatatumba," which appears to a combination of zumba-like jumping, twirling and dancing. A newbie can't keep up, and she later explains to a Planet Fitness employee: "And that's why I don't like gyms." The employee explains that Planet Fitness isn't a gym, and a voiceover takes over, promising "No gymtimidation. No lunks. Unlimited fitness training. Just $10 a month."
As was the case with Crunch's old "No Judgments" positioning, it's never fully clear (at least to me) quite how Planet Fitness is different from other fitness chains. But enough people must feel uncomfortable at gyms to be open to the mere suggestion that this place is somehow mellower. Three more national spots will break soon.
Getting ripped at a luxury gym will make you want to get more naked everywhere, says luxury gym Equinox.
OK, if your prerequisite for being comfortable getting more naked everywhere is having the body of a super-fit fashion model, sure, makes sense. Getting ripped at a luxury gym will also make you want to get a black eye, though, or stow away with your buddy in the trunk of a luxury Mercedes, says Equinox. That makes less sense, because it's dumb to get punched in the face, or cram two people into the trunk of a sedan.
The images in the new print and digital campaign from Wieden + Kennedy in New York, shot by photographer Robert Wyatt, feature the tagline "Equinox made me do it," because writ large, getting ripped at a luxury gym will make you feel like a badass, says the company. That means all kinds of new confidence and adventures with your high-end fashion accessories.
It's not dissimilar in spirit to a highly sexualized campaign, shot by Terry Richardson, that the brand pulled amid criticism late last year. It's just toned in favor of a more ambiguously suggestive and playful sort of mischief, which makes it right on target for a health club that likes to hire fashion photographers to give it that vague haute glow.
The new campaign even approaches direct relevance to the brand's actual product—fitness—with the shot of the guy in the ice bath, assuming he's recovering from a particularly intense workout … though he probably doesn't really need to bring that fancy watch into the tub with him.
More images, a video and credits below.
CREDITS Client: Equinox Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, New York
Print and OOH credits Executive Creative Directors: Colleen DeCourcy, Mark Fitzloff, Ian Reichenthal, Scott Vitrone Creative Directors: Gary Van Dzura, Stuart Jennings Copywriter: Nick Kaplan Art Director: Cyrus Coulter Designer Director: Serifcan Ozcan Account Team: Patrick Cahill, Jacqueline Ventura Creative Services Director: Chris Whalley Project Manager: Yann Samuels Art Buyers: Michelle Chant, Molly Dowd, Hillary Frileck Print Producer: Kristen Althoff Photographer: Robert Wyatt Wardrobe Stylist: Simon Robins Hair Stylist: Owen Gould Makeup Artist: Jo Strettell Business Affairs: Quentin Perry Brand Strategist: Erik Hanson Retouching Agency: Loupe Digital Imaging Retoucher: Mark Baxter
Video credits Executive Creative Directors: Colleen DeCourcy, Mark Fitzloff, Ian Reichenthal, Scott Vitrone Creative Directors: Stuart Jennings, Gary Van Dzura Interactive Creative Director: Gary Van Dzura Copywriter: Nick Kaplan Art Director: Cyrus Coulter Head of Content Production: Lora Shulson Producers: Luiza Naritomi, Kristen Johnson Brand Strategist: Erik Hanson Account Team: Patrick Cahill, Jacqueline Ventura Business Affairs: Quentin Perry
Director, Director of Photography: Hugo Stenson
Editing Company: Rock Paper Scissors Editor: Carlos Arias Post Producer: Lisa Barnable Post Executive Producer: Eve Kornblum Editing Assistants: Chris Mitchel (senior assistant), Alex Liu (assistant)
Telecine Company: Company 3 Colorist: Tom Poole
Mix Company: Heard City Mixer: Eric Warzecha Assistant Engineer: Jeremy Siegel Producer: Sasha Awn
Fitness chain Virgin Active brings a free-spirited, born-to-be-wild attitude to this minute-long spot, showing a determined guy in underpants riding a motorbike at high speed across a dusty South African desert.
"We wanted people to look at it and see a guy who is living life how he wants, without fear or restraint," said Karmarama ecd Sam Walker, the spot's director. "It's about being active in every way, not just about exercise."
A biker attending a local rally was hired on the spot for the ad. Quick splices of big cats, rockets, clocks, blooming flowers and other offbeat imagery add a slight tone of surrealism, as does the use of Beethoven's "Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 Choral—Molto Vivace" for the soundtrack. (Sorry, Steppenwolf.) The tagline: "Live happily ever active."
It's a welcome change from the predictable New Year's glut of gym-based ads that show hard bodies pumping iron. Kudos for breaking the cycle!
North Korean strongman lardass Kim Jong-un should take some advice from New York Sports Clubs: "Exercise reduces aggression and makes you more attractive to others. Join today." The gym franchise, known for its snarky promos tied to current events, on Monday placed an ad in the New York City edition of the Metro newspaper inviting the portly potentate to use its facilities for a workout. Copy starts, "Kim Jong-un, with a great bod, you don't need a big missile." That particular bit of low-hanging humor will likely fall flat for the rotund ruler, since the whole missile thing's proven pretty useful for him so far. Still, he'll burn more calories pumping iron than he will by pressing the button.
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