Coinbase
Lavinia Keller, creative director, Amplify: With a special comeback of Coinbase making an ad that was not an ad at all, but a break singalong break, human storytelling won. The spotlight no longer belongs to product-forward virality, but instead human connection and culture driven storytelling.
Eric Kallman, founder and CCO, Erich & Kallmann: When the Backstreet Boys karaoke started, I perked up. It was so simple, I couldn’t believe it hadn’t been done before. Almost everyone at the party I was at started singing along. It had everyone’s attention. I got more excited as I realized it was a 60-second ad. I couldn’t wait to see how it wrapped up. When it did, the room was kind of confused. “What? Coinbase?” Then everyone went back to talking and not paying attention.
Did it break through and grab attention better than any Super Bowl ad in a while? Yes. Was it fresh, likable, simple, and different? Yes. Do I wish it had a better ending? Yes. Is it probably super hard to do good brand advertising for a cryptocurrency exchange? Yes. Should we all take a minute and say good job Coinbase? Yes.
E.l.f. Beauty
Sol Ricagni, vp of creative and MD, Migrante Agency: E.l.f.’s Super Bowl spot with Melissa McCarthy was a standout for me, not just because it’s genuinely funny, but because it’s culturally fluent in a way that feels intentional. As a Latina, seeing Hispanic culture integrated so boldly and playfully (especially in a year when Bad Bunny’s halftime show centered around unity and love) felt refreshing.
Xfinity
Wes Phelan, ECD, Ogilvy: My absolute favorite idea of the night is a wonderful nostalgic throwback to my youth: Xfinity Jurassic Park. I love how they reimagined that iconic world as a tourist destination, and the twist on the dialogue is funny and smart. It’s amazing that they managed to get it all approved with the entire original cast on board. This genuinely entertained me, and the entire rollout of the campaign was wonderful.
