John Travolta, Adam Driver star in Super Bowl ads

By Mae Anderson, The Associated Press on February 9, 2023.

NEW YORK (AP) – The Super Bowl is advertising’s biggest, glitziest stage.

Big name advertisers from Netflix to Google are paying as much as $7 million for a 30-second spot during the big game on Sunday, in order to capture the attention of the roughly 100 million viewers who tune in each year.

In order to get as much of a return on investment for those millions, most advertisers release their ads in the days ahead of the big game to get the most publicity for their spots. In the ads released so far, John Travolta and “Scrubs” stars Donald Faison and Zach Braff sing a T-Mobile themed version of “Summer Nights” from “Grease,” Adam Driver creates multiple versions of himself for Squarespace, and Alicia Silverstone reprises her “Clueless” character for online shopping site Rakuten.

AVOCADOS FROM MEXICO

Anna Faris stars as Eve, who eats an avocado in the garden of Eden. Flash forward to the present day, when no one is ashamed of nudity and everyone is naked, including the Statue of Liberty.

BOOKING.COM

Actress Melissa McCarthy stars in a musical number for the travel site about her desire to go on a trip “somewhere, anywhere.”

BUD LIGHT

Actor Miles Teller (“Top Gun: Maverick”) and his wife Keleigh Sperry Teller dance to customer service hold music while drinking a Bud Light.

BUDWEISER

In a regional ad, a diverse group of people share a six-pack of Budweiser – a voiceover by Kevin Bacon showcases the “six degrees of Bud.” Although he’s not shown, the ad is a nod to the “Six degrees of Kevin Bacon” meme – the idea that anyone in the entertainment business can be linked to Kevin Bacon in six connections.

BUSCH LIGHT

A mountain man talk talks about surviving the outdoors in an ad that stars singer Sarah McLachlan spoofing her well-known and oft mocked animal-advocacy ad that uses her song “Angel.”

DEXCOM

Singer Nick Jonas returns for the second year in an ad that highlight’s Dexcom’s glucose monitoring system.

DORITOS

Music stars Jack Harlow, Missy Elliott and Elton John team up in an ad for Doritos Sweet & Tangy BBQ that shows Harlow abandoning his rap career to focus on the triangle – a Doritos-shaped musical instrument.

DOWNY UNSTOPABLES

Super Bowl regular Procter & Gamble promotes its Downy Unstopables brand in an ad showing actor Danny McBride – who wants to go by “Downy McBride.”

DRAFTKINGS

The online betting site shows stars including skateboard mogul Tony Hawk and singer Ludacris discussing DraftKings free bet offer at a party at actor Kevin Hart’s house.

GENERAL MOTORS AND NETFLIX

Actor and comedian Will Ferrell drives different GM electric vehicles through different Netflix shows, including “Bridgerton” and “Stranger Things,” to announce that Netflix will feature electric vehicles in its original shows.

GOOGLE

Google promotes its Pixel photo editing tools “Magic Eraser” and “Photo Unblur” with a 90 second spot featuring Amy Schumer, Doja Cat and NBA star Giannis Antetekoumpo.

KIA

Kia’s ad for its 2023 Telluride X-Pro SUV shows a dad making an epic trek to recover a child’s left behind “binky.”

HELLMANN’S

The mayo brand shows actors Jon Hamm and Brie Larson in a fridge with a jar of Hellmann’s mayo – to drive home the point that Hellmann’s would go well with a “ham and brie” sandwich.

MICHELOB ULTRA

Michelob Ultra’s two ads are set at Bushwood Country Club, the fictional country club in “Caddyshack,” and star a bevy of stars and athletes: tennis great Serena Williams, actor Brian Cox, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, soccer player Alex Morgan and boxer Canelo Alvarez.

PEPSI ZEROSUGAR

Pepsi is running two ads starring Ben Stiller and Steve Martin that ask “Great acting or great taste?” and ask viewers to taste Pepsi Zero Sugar for themselves.

PLANTERS

Jeff Ross, Natasha Leggero and other comedians hold a “roast” for the Planters spokescharacter Mr. Peanut.

POPCORNERS

The Frito-Lay brand recreates “Breaking Bad” with Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul – but this time the duo are cooking up the PopCorners snack in their RV instead of anything illicit.

PRINGLES

Anyone can get their hand stuck in a Pringles can, according to Pringles’ latest Super Bowl ad effort, including singer Meghan Trainor.

SQUARESPACE

Adam Driver contemplates the fact that “Squarespace is a website that makes websites” and splits into multiple versions of himself.

RAKUTEN

The online shopping site tapped “Clueless” stars Alicia Silverstone and Elisa Donovan to recreate a scene from the 1995 hit and convey that Rakuten gives shoppers cash back on purchases. Designer Christian Siriano also appears as a student.

T-MOBILE

To promote its 5G home internet, John Travolta sings a version of “Summer Nights” with “Scrubs” stars Donald Faison and Zach Braff touting its benefits.

UBER ONE

Uber’s ad for its membership program Uber One shows hip hop mogul P. Diddy working to create a hit song for Uber One. The ad features singers of famous hits, including Montell Jordan (“This is How We Do It”), Kelis (“Milkshake”), Donna Lewis (“I Love You Always Forever”), Haddaway (“What is Love”) and Ylvis (“What Does the Fox Say”).

WORKDAY

In the first Super Bowl ad from the enterprise software company, actual rock stars Ozzy Osbourne, Billy Idol, Joan Jett and others complain that office workers shouldn’t call each other “rock stars.”

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