Dive Brief:

• Gatorade is bringing back a retro campaign concept, but with creative elements revamped to fit the world of “Stranger Things,” per details shared with Marketing Dive.
• The PepsiCo brand is dusting off “No Ordinary Thirst Quencher,” which first debuted in 1987, while shifting the narrative to the Netflix show’s setting of Hawkins, Indiana, and the Upside Down. “No Ordinary Athlete” debuts Monday with a 30-second spot showing how Gatorade is the right thirst quencher for overcoming extraordinary battles. 
• The ad, which will run on social and digital channels before hitting connected TV (CTV), includes a version of the “No Ordinary Thirst Quencher” jingle from the ‘80s and narration by NFL player Myles Garrett, a Gatorade ambassador and avid “Stranger Things” viewer. Out-of-home (OOH) takeovers, merchandise and the return of a retro flavor further support the push.  

Dive Insight:

Gatorade joins a fleet of brands collaborating with Netflix to stoke anticipation for the fifth and final season of “Stranger Things,” one of the streamer’s most successful original series and a broad pop culture phenomenon. The sports beverage marketer’s campaign was designed to fit the ‘80s setting of the show, resurrecting a “No Ordinary Thirst Quencher” platform that debuted during the decade but reworking the creative to focus on the Upside Down, a desolate alternate reality populated by monsters. 

The 30-second spot begins as a young basketball player in the fictional town of Hawkins reaches for a glass bottle of Gatorade during a game while the “No Ordinary Thirst Quencher” jingle plays. As he jumps into the air to grab possession of the ball, the court shifts to its nefarious Upside Down counterpart — a transformation symbolizing the pressure of sports performance — and the synth-heavy “Stranger Things” title theme kicks in. The same scenario plays out for a baseball and football player, with a cameo from Vecna, a “Stranger Things” antagonist who preys on his victims’ worst fears. Garrett’s narration highlights how these challenges can be overcome by extraordinary athleticism — and the thirst-quenching power of Gatorade. 

Along with the ad featuring Garrett, Gatorade is running high-impact OOH placements in New York City, Los Angeles and Cleveland, Ohio, where the Browns defensive end plays. The effort additionally includes two capsule collections on Gatorade.com — a 1987 Hawkins Capsule and an Upside Down Capsule — that carry old-school Gatorade apparel, towels and other items. Gatorade at the same time is bringing back Citrus Cooler, a flavor first introduced in 1988, with five limited-edition collectible bottles bearing retro-inspired packaging and a special Upside Down variant that will be available at retailers nationwide. 

“No Ordinary Athlete” was developed with Gatorade’s creative agency, TBWA\Chiat\Day LA. OMD handled paid media while Wasserman led social strategy, FleishmanHillard handled PR and Noun Agency worked on influencer components of the push. The media plan includes a CTV buy around Netflix’s Christmas Day NFL game, which aligns with when one of the final batches of “Stranger Things” episodes drops.

Gatorade has long been known for its sports marketing, but is experimenting more with weaving entertainment into its strategy. In April, the PepsiCo-owned brand partnered with star rapper Kendrick Lamar on ads that extended its “Is It In You?” platform around the NBA playoffs. Gatorade brought back “Is It In You?,” a signature bit of advertising that first appeared in the ‘90s, last year.    

Since its premiere nearly a decade ago, “Stranger Things” has been a magnet for legacy brands that view its ‘80s setting and Spielbergian story touches as rich veins for nostalgic marketing, but the scale and sophistication of tie-in campaigns around the show have expanded as Netflix focuses on building out its advertising business. 

Target, Doritos and Chips Ahoy are among the other brands running large-scale campaigns, product promotions and activations around the “Stranger Things” wrap-up, which releases in three phases, with the series finale timed to New Year’s. Nostalgic marketing continues to dominate the CPG category in ways that extend beyond a specific show. Welch’s, Pringles and Sprite are just some of the brands that have recently reworked older taglines, mascots and ads to better appeal to Gen Z and millennials.