Skittles today, Jan. 13, announced plans to perform its Super Bowl ad at the front door of a contest-winning consumer, per details shared with Marketing Dive. The game day spot, as well as an accompanying promotional campaign, star “Lord of the Rings” actor Elijah Wood.
The activation is described as an “ad experience that cannot be paused, skipped [or] muted,” which speaks to the challenge marketers face when deciding whether or not to pony up millions for a commercial during the biggest day for football and advertising. Confectionary brands Kinder Bueno and Nerds will run ads during this year’s big game.
“Skittles has always delivered deliciously perplexing experiences to fans, but this year we are bringing the unexpected to fans on game day,” said Gabrielle Wesley, chief marketing officer for Mars Wrigley North America, in a statement.
Increasingly, Super Bowl ads rely on celebrities and nostalgia for their most iconic roles. Wood began his career as a child actor in the 1990s before starring as the hobbit Frodo in the “Lord of the Rings” movie franchise.
“I am a huge Skittles’ commercial fan,” Wood said in a behind-the-scene interview clip. “For a very, very long time, I've loved their ads. They are unhinged, they are at times uncomfortable, often quite deeply tragic and really f'ing funny.”
Ads previewing the effort share the oddball sense of humor favored in past Skittles campaigns. In a 15-second spot, two teenagers use a magical horn to summon a three-legged, one-horned woodland creature played by Wood. The creature delivers Skittles but notes that “most teenagers order candy from an app” before mentioning Gopuff and the commercial contest. In a meta nod, the teens aren’t familiar with Wood.
The 15-second spot will run across YouTube, connected TV and social channels, while a 60-second cut that goes deeper into the creature’s predicament will run on owned and shared channels for Skittles, Gopuff and Wood. Consumers can visit DeliverTheRainbow.com to enter to win the Super Bowl commercial contest, which ends on Jan. 21. Skittles is also selling a “Big Game Bundle” on Gopuff.
Skittles last year created the “Legally Acknowledge the Rainbow” campaign in collaboration with Team OMC, the group of DDB Chicago and Critical Mass, to promote its Pop’d product. Sister brand Twix last year also looked to hijack attention during the Super Bowl with a “Second Screen Staredown” game that gave consumers a chance to win two solid gold bars.
Parent company Mars in December closed its $36 billion acquisition of Kellanova, bringing brands including M&Ms, Snickers, Pringles and Pop-Tarts under the same roof.
