The Most Shared Ads Of Super Bowl 2015
With any upcoming sporting event, people typically fall into one of two categories: either you’re impossibly excited or you don’t care at all. Not so with the Super Bowl, which kicks off its 50th outing on next month at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clare.
Despite featuring the world’s least comprehensible sport, the Super Bowl has managed to safeguard itself against viewer fatigue by turning itself into an all-singing, all-dancing, meme-producing circus, with star-studded advertisements as one of the main attractions.
2015 was no exception to this rule, with brands putting every dollar, creative spark and Hollywood connection into an impressive roster of blockbuster spots. Without further ado, these are the ads which made a lasting impression at Super Bowl 49.
10. Universal – Pitch Perfect 2 trailer
Shares: 172,546
With the world’s eyes trained on the action, the Super Bowl is famously one of the highest profile venues for launching film trailers. At number 10, the follow-up to Anna Kendrick’s 2012 acapella epic was not only shared widely, the film also made a quarter of a billion dollars at the box office. Not bad considering they don’t even have instruments.
9. Universal – Fifty Shades of Grey trailer
Shares: 251,051
In 2015, the world’s most talked-about book briefly became the world’s most talked-about film. But on the way, ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ also lit up the Super Bowl, at least partly thanks to a slo-mo version of Beyonce’s ‘Crazy in Love’.
8. Universal – Minions trailer
Shares: 254,783
Anyone who spends any time with kids will know that the meme-tastic movie phenomenon ‘Minions’ came out in 2015. The world has Super Bowl 49 to thank for unleashing this googly-eyed joy.
7. Bud Light – Real Life PacMan
Shares: 276,241
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9A1NowrnGI
At last, an actual advert – and a fun one at that! One part of Budweiser’s regular domination of Super Bowl programming (more on that later) is its Bud Light branch, which specializes in fun frivolities like 2015’s ‘Real Life PacMan’. While the clue is in the title, it’s worth a watch to see an ingenious ‘event’ spectacle executed well.
6. Snickers – The Brady Bunch
Shares: 292,689
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqbomTIWCZ8
Undeniably the strangest Super Bowl ad put out in 2015, Snickers’ ‘Brady Bunch’ was a popular favourite here at Unruly. Reviving the kitschy 1970s sitcom with the help of some incongruous character actors, agency BBDO New York certainly didn’t fail to make an impression. If you like ads with a healthy dose of ‘Too Many Cooks’, this may be for you.
5. Paramount: Terminator Genysys trailer
Shares: 311,469
Aaaand back to world of films, with our number 5 spot going to Paramount’s “Terminator Genysys” trailer. Despite starring Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke and, of course, Arnie himself, the trailer manages to distinguish itself as the least coherent in the series’ history. And that’s saying something.
4. Universal – Ted 2 trailer
Shares: 539,642
Meanwhile, at number 4, a different kind of franchise star returned in the form of Seth MacFarlane’s adorable offense factory, Ted.
3. SuperCell – Clash of Clans: Revenge
Shares: 880,011
Beating out Snickers to be crowned the biggest comedy ad of the games, SuperCell’s social success is mostly thanks to its unlikely star: Liam Neeson. Playing off the tropes of his ‘Taken’ character, the spot finds Neeson on tremendous and self-effacing form, prefiguring this year’s similarly star-studded spots.
2. Universal – Fast & Furious 7
Shares: 1,317,954
Last Super Bowl’s highest-sharing trailer, ‘Fast & Furious 7’, ended up becoming one of the highest-grossing film of the year. Despite losing a couple of definite articles over the course of the series’ 15-year run, the film’s endless explosions and flagrant lack of environmental concern clearly struck a chord with viewers.
- Budweiser – Lost Dog
Shares: 2,543,232
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAsjRRMMg_Q
Last but not least, could it be anything else? Budweiser have more or less owned the Super Bowl ad race for the past few years, thanks to a string of sentimental narratives involving, variously, adorable dogs, loyal horses and hard-working farm hands in baseball caps. Everything about Budweiser’s ‘Lost Dog’ is so proudly, indefatigably American that it seems only right the ad should win out on the most American weekend of the year.
