Super Bowl 60 concluded with a Seahawks victory and a stellar halftime performance by Bad Bunny, but the real story—and the most depressing one—was the relentless parade of high-priced commercials. As has become the unfortunate norm, the broadcast was saturated with A-list celebrities peddling everything from AI software to donuts and crackers in spots that were as uninspired as they were expensive.
A New Low in Marketing
While I opted to skip the live broadcast this year, the post-game social media consensus was grim. After reviewing the full lineup this morning, it is clear that the marketing machine behind Super Bowl 60 has sunk even lower than the already lackluster efforts seen in Super Bowl 59. The industry seems to have forgotten how to craft a compelling pitch, relying instead on randomized celebrity pairings and unsettling technology.
The Uncanny Valley of Celebrity Endorsements
Many of this year’s ads were marred by the bizarre use of CG de-aging technology, turning beloved actors into haunting, wax-like figures. Dunkin’ Donuts delivered a particularly painful experience, attempting to leverage 90s sitcom nostalgia with a hollow cameo-fest featuring Ben Affleck. The result was a CGI-heavy nightmare that lacked any real punchline.
Similarly, Xfinity attempted a Jurassic Park concept that sounded promising on paper but collapsed under the weight of its own execution. Watching stars with unnaturally smooth, computer-generated skin move across the screen was more unsettling than amusing.
AI Desperation and Celebrity Overload
The push for AI was omnipresent, yet consistently failed to resonate. MrBeast appeared in a spot that highlighted a surprising lack of on-camera charisma, while Matthew Broderick was relegated to an office-themed ad promoting AI-driven productivity that felt entirely uninspired.
Sofía Vergara took the crown for the most frequent face of the night, appearing in three separate commercials—a reminder that luxury real estate comes with a high price tag. Meanwhile, Uber Eats persisted with its confusing NFL-conspiracy campaign, and Novo Nordisk secured the title for “Most Random Celeb Appearances” by seemingly recruiting anyone available in Los Angeles on a Tuesday.
Is the Marketing Industry Cooked?
Watching these ads feels less like entertainment and more like a fever dream of corporate desperation. Marketing agencies appear to be relying on a “throw celebrities at it and hope something sticks” strategy that ignores the audience’s intelligence. It is a bleak timeline where actors feel no shame in hawking mundane products through increasingly bizarre and unfunny skits.
If this is the future of advertising, it is time to pull the plug. We are left with a collection of boring, soulless commercials that prove one thing: when it comes to modern marketing, more stars and more technology do not equal more substance.
