When stars sign on to endorse an apparel brand, they sometimes make a pledge not to be seen wearing anything else. But that usually just applies to competing products, not giving up clothing entirely–a distinction that seems lost on Hugh Jackman in the newest ad from his frienemy Ryan Reynolds’ content studio, Maximum Effort. Just…
Australian actress Isla Fisher plays a reluctant celebrity spokeswoman in VCCP Sydney’s new spot for ING Direct, entitled “Monloluge.” She nervously talks herself through the role, which only contains one line, “ING Direct, how banking can be.”
“How am I going to make that sound real?” she asks herself, walking onto the set. She goes on to complain about the tightness of her dress and work in quick jabs at fellow Australian actors Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe before the camera rolls…at which point things go awry. The spot is the latest ad to feature a reluctant spokesperson, a trope popularized with Droga5’s “If We Made It” spot starring Anna Kendrick and perfected by Ricky Gervais in M&C Saatchi’s campaign introducing Australia to Neflix for Optus. As far as the style goes, Isla’s “Monologue” falls somewhere in the middle of the pack, a good deal more entertaining than Neil Patrick Harris in W+K’s New York’s recent work for Heineken Light, but the joke is starting to get a bit stale.
Havas Worldwide New York launched a new spot for Keurig, highlighting the brand’s partnership with Hugh Jackman‘s Laughing Man coffee company.
Jackman tells the origin story of Laughing Man, the company he launched “to bring distinctive products to market while supporting individual producers and the growth of local communities” in the 60-second spot, “The Cup Half Full.” He explains how the company emerged after he and his wife met an Ethiopian coffee grower while traveling to the country and promised to help, before announcing that the coffee is now available in bastardized K-Cup form. The company donates all its profits to charity, so the partnership with Keurig could actually help spread some good, thus the focus on the product as “a cup of pure optimism.”
Given his enthusiasm for the endeavor, Jackman was quick to agree to appear in the series of ads. “Before we even had to ask, they said Hugh Jackman was on board,” Tim Maleeny, chief strategy officer at Havas, New York, told Adweek.
“This is really a marriage of three brands,” explained Havas account manager Laure Ayel. “It’s Hugh Jackman himself, Keurig and a virtually unknown brand in Laughing Man.”
As Adweek points out, the feel-good effort is a calculated move for Keurig, designed to steer the conversation away from the environmental impact of its disposable products. For Laughing Man, the partnership is a mixed bag, undoubtedly allowing the company to generate more revenue that will ultimately go toward charitable purposes while also muddying its idealistic business model with Keurig’s environmentally detrimental practices. The product, currently only available online, is slated for a retail release in the fall, accompanied by a larger media buy.
Credits:
Client: Keurig Green Mountain
Agency: Havas Worldwide, New York
Group ECD, Managing Director: Israel Garber
Group ECD, Managing Director: Jason Musante
ECD: Dustin Duke, Jon Wagner
CD: Donnell Johnson
ACD: Rhea Hanges
Head of Content, North America: Rich Rosenthal
Co-Head of Production, North America: Sylvain Tron
Executive Producer: Arlene Steinwald
Junior Producer: Wendy Luong
Digital Producer: Thao Le
Group Account Director: Laura Dartnall
Account Director: Laure Ayel
Account Supervisor: Lindsay Stanislau
Assistant Account Executive: Alex Zubak
Production Company: Tool
Director: Erich Joiner
Managing DirectorL Oliver Fuselier
Executive Producer: Lori Sonebraker
Producer: Joby Ochsner
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