Why Are All Our Movies Ads Now?
7/13/202653 min
When we watch a movie we see 4-5 brands every 10 minutes. The advertising is hidden in plain sight and this episode goes looking for where and how that trick first came to Hollywood.
E.T. and a bag of Reese's Pieces, Lois Lane chain smoking Marlboros, Happy Gilmore’s Subway t-shirts… and Jerry McGuire taking Reebok’s money and then screwing them over. All steps on the path to the situation audiences now find themselves in - marketing campaigns dressed up as movies.
All that… plus a two truths and a lie with a twist - one "casual" mention in this very episode was a paid placement.
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Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsChris Kohler· Host0:00
I was watching Happy Gilmore on a plane the other day, absolute all-timer for me, and when I got to the bit where Happy does an ad for Subway, I, I found myself [chuckles] really wanting a Subway. And I think I'm gonna have to get the perspective of our excellent producer, Rob, on this. Rob, hello.
Rob· Host0:17
Howdy.
Chris Kohler· Host0:18
Do you remember the bit I'm talking about in Happy Gilmore?
Rob· Host0:20
Yeah, I do.
Chris Kohler· Host0:21
There's a bit, there's a few bits.
Rob· Host0:22
Yeah.
Chris Kohler· Host0:22
Like, he's wearing a Subway shirt.
Rob· Host0:24
Yep.
Chris Kohler· Host0:24
He hits the ball, but the ball is a Subway foot-long.
Rob· Host0:27
Yep.
Chris Kohler· Host0:27
It's a whole ad.
Rob· Host0:28
Yeah.
Chris Kohler· Host0:29
You know the bit I'm talking about?
Rob· Host0:30
I do.
Chris Kohler· Host0:30
So I looked it up, and sure enough, Subway paid for that.
Rob· Host0:34
Oh.
Chris Kohler· Host0:35
I know. It's, it's an ad in the movie, but it's still an ad to you and me watching it.
Rob· Host0:41
Yeah.
Chris Kohler· Host0:42
And it's still an ad to us watching it now.
Rob· Host0:44
I guess it's a good way to, you know, help the bottom line of doing a film.
Chris Kohler· Host0:47
It is. It's genius. I mean, I saw it the other day, and it still works. I still feel fondly about Subway because Happy Gilmore, AKA Adam Sandler, is spruiking it.
Rob· Host1:00
Yeah.
Chris Kohler· Host1:00
Now, we don't know how much Subway paid for that. Those amounts are very rarely disclosed.
Rob· Host1:05
Mm.
Chris Kohler· Host1:06
But we do know that when Happy Gilmore 2 happened, only a few years ago, Subway was all over it again.
Rob· Host1:12
Yeah.
Chris Kohler· Host1:12
Key sponsors.
Rob· Host1:13
Do you think they just said, "Hey, do you want a foot-long meatball sub?" And that was enough?
Chris Kohler· Host1:16
[laughs] Maybe. Maybe. Maybe it would be if you and I were- Yeah ... putting together the movie.
Rob· Host1:20
[laughs] Yeah.
Chris Kohler· Host1:21
[laughs] But I think for Adam Sandler, a lot of money was changing hands there.
Rob· Host1:25
Yeah.
Chris Kohler· Host1:26
This episode is all about products