In an idea straight out of a South Park parody of Family Guy, California-based agency Lambesis uses Mr. T to sell Coca-Cola iced tea brand Fuze. But Lambesis ratchets up the level of bizarreness by turning him into a butterfly.
When a woman sitting on a park bench pops open the beverage, a group of Mr. T monarchs emerge from the container and one stops by to give her his compliments on her choice of the “flavor charged Fuze.” Speaking in rhymes and extolling the beverage’s B-vitamins, he claims the only thing bolder than the beverage is T. himself.
The brief spot is, of course, steeped in the ridiculous in an attempt to stick in viewer’s minds, but can Mr. T really convince people to give the drink a go? Lambesis and Coca-Cola are betting he can give the struggling brand (down 18.2 percent in the most recent measured period, according to Chicago-based market research firm IRI) a boost. The digital campaign launched this week, supported by social, OOH and experiential elements, and will run through October, with the brand still evaluating whether or not it will roll out to broadcast and print.
“We were looking for somebody with high awareness, high likability and certainly a connection with someone who has a big, bold personality,” Geoff Henry, group director-tea, Coca-Cola North America, told AdAge. “Mr. T came back at the top of the list. In fact, ‘he pitied us for not calling him sooner.’”
Mr. T guest-stars as a living pun in this Crispin Porter + Boguksy ad for Old Navy Best Tees, which are more stylish and durable than their previous ones. That's not a huge accomplishment, but whatever, it's their ad. (T also appeared in a two-minute Old Navy infomercial last year with Anna Faris.) I enjoyed the quiet irony of putting Mr. T on a plane, when B.A. Baracus was scared to death of them, but it's a little hard for the audience to accept that he can just kick the bathroom door down in a post-9/11 world. No T-shirt in the world can get you out of that kind of trouble.
CREDITS Client: Old Navy Agency: Crispin Porter + Bogusky Partner/Worldwide Chief Creative Officer: Rob Reilly Executive Creative Director: Jason Gaboriau Creative Director: Robin Fitzgerald Creative Director: Cameron Harris Associate Creative Directors: Alexandra Sann, Mike Kohlbecker Sr. Copywriter: Dafna Garber Copywriter: Chelsea O'Brien Art Director: Mary Dauterman Director of Video Production: Chad Hopenwasser Executive Integrated Producer (Music): Bill Meadows Executive Integrated Producer: Deb Drumm Junior Integrated Producer: Jackie Maloney Executive Business Affairs Manager: Amy Jacobsen Business Affairs Manager: Michelle McKinney Production Company & City: Smuggler, Hollywood, CA Director: Randy Krallman Assistant Directors: Jey Wada, Erin Stern Executive Producers/Partners: Patrick Milling Smith, Brian Carmody Executive Producer/COO: Lisa Rich Executive Producers: Allison Kunzman, Laura Thoel Head of Production: Andrew Colón Producer: Paula Cohen Director of Photography: Bryan Newman Editorial Company & City: Cut + Run, Santa Monica, CA Head of Production/Senior Producer: Christie Price Executive Producer: Carr Schilling Editor: Frank Effron Assistant Editors: Heather Bartholomae, Brooke Rupe Visual Effects Company & City: Method Studios, Santa Monica, CA Executive Producer: Robert Owens Producer: Colin Clarry Set Supervisor: Rob Hodgson VFX Supervisors: Jason Schugardt, Michael Sean Foley Lead Composer: Kelly Bumbarger Graphics & Animation Company & City: Buck, Los Angeles, CA Executive Creative Director: Ryan Honey Executive Producer: Maurie Enochson Sr. Producer: Nick Terzich Associate Producer: Ashley Hsieh Art Director: Jenny Ko Designer: Sean Dekkers Animator: TJ Socho Music Company & City: Search Party, Portland, OR Executive Producer: Sara Matarazzo Producer: Chris Funk Composer: Terence Bernardo Sound Design & City: Machine Head, Santa Monica, CA Sound Designer: Stephen Dewey Producer: Patty Chow Dewey Telecine & City: Company 3, Santa Monica, CA President/Colorist: Stefan Sonnenfeld Executive Producer: Rhubie Jovanov Partner/Managing Director: Steve Erich EGroup Account Director: Danielle Whalen Account Director: Kate Higgins Content Management Supervisor: Laura Likos Content Supervisors: Jessica Francis, Kendra Schaaf Content Manager: Alex Kirk, Michelle Forbush Group Director, Planning: Lindsey Allison Cognitive Anthropologists: Jennifer Hruska, Tiffany Ahern
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