Oatly “Wow, No Cow” (2021)
Agency: in-house
Oatly’s bizarre commercial may have annoyed some people, but that was kind of the point. Going against the wave of celebrity-filled Super Bowl spots, the brand’s low-budget ad showed the CEO, Toni Petersson, sitting at a keyboard in a field of oats and performing a jingle he wrote himself. “It’s like milk, but made for humans,” he crooned. “Wow, wow, no cow.” The earworm got stuck in viewers’ heads, while Oatly showed other brands how to embrace the haters.
Liquid Death, “Kids Hydrating” (2022)
Agency: In-house
A truism about Liquid Death: the canned water brand regularly and gleefully kicks the proverbial hornet’s nest with its marketing, and this spot could be labeled Exhibit #1. The misdirect here is entirely intentional—the hard-partying children and their pregnant chaperone aren’t drunk, they’re just super hydrated and naturally stoked. But it sure looks illegal and/or immoral. A regional buy in 23 markets, the ad sparked more talk value, pearl clutching and social traffic than many national campaigns. And it helped solidify Liquid Death’s much-coveted bad boy rep.
Coinbase “QR code” (2022)
Agency: Accenture Song
Coinbase’s Super Bowl ad had no traditional markers of a big-budget Super Bowl commercial, with a minimalist concept that resembled an old-school screensaver. The spot consisted only of a colorful QR code floating against a black screen, which when scanned linked to a bitcoin giveaway. The ad sparked controversy and disrupted the noise of other Super Bowl campaigns.
Tubi “Interface Interruption” (2023)
Agency: Mischief @ No Fixed Address
Last year, many Super Bowl viewers were left scratching their heads when the broadcast was interrupted by what appeared to be someone scrolling through their Tubi menu. But rather than a technical error, it was a prank from the streaming service, which went down as one of the biggest “gotcha” moments in marketing.
