Super Bowl LV is in the books, and that means it’s time to re-live the best commercials from the big game.
More anticipated in some households than the actual Super Bowl, or even the half-time show, are the interstitial advertising spots that break up the periods of play. No matter your level of engagement with the game or your football knowledge, everyone wants to watch the commercials. This year the commercials were the most entertaining part of the broadcast.
In the PVR and on-demand generation of viewing, live-event advertising has become coveted ground. The most sacred and lucrative of which is Super Bowl commercial real estate, and this year the cost of a 30-second commercial during the 2020 Super Bowl was $5.6 million, the same cost as it was last year and up $400,000 from 2019.
Despite the price, the biggest day in advertising brought back the usual suspects like M&M’s, Tide, Skechers, WeatherTech, TurboTax and Pringles.
New big game advertisers included DoorDash, Vroom, Mercari, Guaranteed Rate, Robinhood, Chipotle, Scotts Miracle-Gro and Bass Pro Shops.
Brands kept up the trend of relying on star power, including celebrities like Cardi B, Michael B. Jordan, Dan Levy, Martha Stewart, Ashton Kutcher, Don Cheadle, Matthew McConaughey, John Cena, Lil Nas X, Nick Jonas, Awkwafina, Dolly Parton, Maya Rudolph, Will Ferrell and Kenan Thompson. The athletes featured were Tony Romo, Serena Williams, Anthony Davis, Peyton Manning, Brooks Koepka, Jimmy Butler and Alex Morgan.
This is the one game that produces both a captive audience and an urge to share reactions, thus creating impressions on social media. This year’s ads skewed light and funny or philanthropic and referenced the COVID-19 realities we’re all facing.
I’ve made it a habit to make a not-so-definitive and totally-open-for-debate list of the best Super Bowl commercials every year.
Here are the top 25 ads from Sunday’s Super Bowl 55.
25. Chipotle - Can a Burrito Change the World?
Venables Bell & Partners helps Chipotle, in their first-ever Super Bowl ad, promote their initiative to help young farmers while also pumping a new burrito.
24. Skechers - To the Max
Tony Romo wasn’t just busy calling the game. Skechers aired a commercial with the former Dallas Cowboys QB and his wife Candice.
23. Bud Light, "Bud Light Legends"
Wieden+Kennedy New York made this Bud Light spot, which brings back an all-star cast of their previous Super Bowl commercial characters including Post Malone and Cedric the Entertainer, who last starred in a Bud light ad in 2005.
22. JEEP - THE MIDDLE
This ad, created by Doner and voiced by Bruce Springsteen, focuses on the division in the United States and the need to find a middle ground.
21. Michelob Ultra, "All-Star Cast"
One of two ads for Michelob Ultra organic seltzer is a pump fake of an ad full of celebrities, but it’s actually just a bunch of lookalikes and Don Cheadle with his own personal lookalike, his brother.
20. Scotts Miracle-Grom-Keep Growing
VaynerMedia made this spot for Scotts Miracle-Gro, where celebrities like Martha Stewart show how serious they take their lawn care.
19. Klarna - Four Quarter-Sized Cowboys
Mirimar teamed up with Klarna to help the firm make their inaugural Super Bowl appearance with Maya Rudolph in a leading role.
18. Cadillac – ScissorHandsFree
If you’re a fan of the 1990 Tim Burton film "Edward Scissorhands" you’ll love what Cadillac did to show off their electric, semi-autonomous vehicle.
17. Tide - The Jason Alexander Hoodie
Woven Collaborative helped Tide make a Super Bowl commercial for the fourth time in the last five years. Seinfeld actor Jason Alexander sees his likeness on a hoodie that is in need of some TLC and a wash.
16. Squarespace - 5 to 9 by Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton was brought in to remix her “9 to 5” song for Squarespace’s Super Bowl spot. The country music icon created “5 to 9,” to speak to all of those hustling after work to make their true passions come true.
15. General Motors - No Way, Norway
McCann World group brought forth this comedic spot, which highlights the fact Norway leads the world -- and specifically is ahead of the U.S. -- when it comes to electric vehicle usage. In this General Motor's commercial, Will Ferrell rounds up Kenan Thompson and Awkwafina to address the issue.
14. Toyota - Upstream
Saatchi & Saatchi produces this commercial for Toyota, featuring Paralympian Olympic swimmer Jessica Long and the choice of her mother to adopt her without hesitation.
13. Logitech - Defy Logic
Lil Nas X recently came to a brand partnership with the Swiss digital product company, Logitech. Their new “Defy Logic” campaign shows off what happens when a diverse subset of creators, artists and activists is given an opportunity.
12. T-Mobile - #TheGOATin5G
This T-Mobile ad was set for the big game but was banned due to the rights deal Verizon has with the NFL. The commercial flashes back to last off-season, depicting Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski experiencing a broken-telephone situation in which bad cell reception ends up being the true reason Brady joins Tampa Bay.
11. Frito-Lay - ‘Twas the Night Before Super Bowl
Marshawn Lynch stars in this commercial where Super Bowl champions like the Manning brothers, Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Deion Sanders, Jerome Bettis and Terry Bradshaw get ready for the big game with chips.
10. Indeed - The Rising
The most relatable spot for many watching, as the COVID-19 pandemic has created record unemployment in North America saw Indeed, an online job site, talking directly to prospective job seekers. 72andSunny are the creative minds behind the ad that takes us through the highs and lows of finding work.
9. Cheetos "It Wasn't Me"
Goodby, Silverstein & Partners somehow convinced Ashton Kutcher to sing as he wonders what happened to his Cheetos Crunch Pop Mix. Frequent Super Bowl commercial actor and Kutcher’s wife, Mila Kunis channels her inner Shaggy with "It Wasn't Me" as the soundtrack.
8. Doritos - #FlatMatthew
Creative agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners enlisted Matthew McConaughey for the #FlatMatthew campaign, which promoted Doritos 3D Crunch to the tune of “I Want to Break Free” by Queen.
7. DoorDash – The Neighbourhood
DoorDash’s first-ever Super Bowl ad features actor Daveed Diggs alongside Muppets Grover, Cookie Monster, Big Bird and Rosit.
DoorDash is using the spot to invite viewers to support Sesame Workshops, an American non-profit organization that has produced several educational children's programs — including Sesame Street. DoorDash is donating $1 to the organization for every order, up to a total contribution of $1 million.
6. Anheuser-Busch InBev - Let's Grab a Beer
Wieden+Kennedy got the account for Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Super Bowl ad which depicts beer and the act of going out for one as a means to comfort and communion.
5. State Farm – Drake from State Farm
Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers are overshadowed in this spot, as “the boy” Drake steals the show as the stand-in for the State Farm spokesperson.
4. Michelob Ultra – Happy
The award for the most athletes in one spot goes to Michelob. Michelob Ultra hired Wieden+Kennedy for this commercial, which shows Serena Williams, Anthony Davis, Peyton Manning, Brooks Koepka, Jimmy Butler and Alex Morgan in their day-to-day lives being happy -- the driving force to the success in their careers.
3. Bud Light - Last Year's Lemons
This commercial, produced by Wieden+Kennedy New York, promotes Bud’s hard seltzer lemonade flavor by utilizing lemons falling from the sky to depict making the best out of all the cancelled plans and pivoting we were forced to do in 2020.
2. Amazon - Alexa's Body
Have you ever wondered what Alexa would be like with the voice of someone else? Well, what about the body of someone else? Alexa becomes Michael B. Jordan in this spot that taps into the actor's comedic timing and sex-symbol status.
1. M&M’s - Come Together
BBDO New York produced this piece where M&M’s are used as a peace offering even towards a literal “Karen.” Canadians will be happy to see fellow Canuck Dan Levy appears in the commercial, showing just what a big star, he has become that he can carry a Super Bowl commercial.
