Super Bowl commercials have become entertainment spectacles in their own right, sometimes rivaling the game itself for viewer attention.
This year’s Big Game advertising lineup didn’t disappoint, featuring everyone from Office star Brian Baumgartner to Oscar winner Emma Stone.
With over 127 million viewers tuning in last year, brands pulled out all the stops to capture attention during commercial breaks.
From emotional animal stories to celebrity reunions and irreverent humor, these ads represented months of creative work and millions of dollars in airtime investments.
Celebrity-Packed Commercials Dominated Airtime
Brian Baumgartner brought his beloved Kevin character from The Office to Ramp’s financial platform commercial. The ad cleverly showed multiple versions of Kevin tackling workplace tasks with help from the expense management tool.
NFL brothers Jason and Kylie Kelce teamed up with celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey for YouTube TV’s spot. Their message was clear: don’t settle for mediocre streaming services.
State Farm recruited Keegan-Michael Key, Danny McBride, and Hailee Steinfeld for a Bon Jovi parody. The comedic duo sang “Livin’ on a Prayer” to explain coverage gaps, joined by girl group Katseye.
Musical Moments Created Memorable Jingles
Ben Stiller and pop sensation Benson Boone delivered perhaps the catchiest jingle of the night for Instacart. Their performance promoted the app’s “preference picker” feature, which allows shoppers to specify exactly what they want.
Stiller’s failed attempt at matching Boone’s backflips provided physical comedy that ended in hilarious chaos. Try getting “Instacart lets you choose your bananas” out of your head after watching.
The Backstreet Boys made their grand return for T-Mobile, performing a parody of “I Want It That Way.” Screaming fans were treated to lyrics about “America’s best network” instead of romantic yearning.
Emma Stone’s Domain Name Drama Got Meta
Director Yorgos Lanthimos created a striking black-and-white Squarespace commercial featuring Emma Stone. The Oscar winner dramatically smashed multiple laptops after discovering EmmaStone.com was unavailable.
Stone took the campaign beyond television with an actual video message on EmmaStone.com itself. She revealed carrying the burden of domain name unavailability for over 20 years.
For over 20 years, my domain name EmmaStone.com was unavailable, registered to another Emma Stone. For many years, I blamed this Emma Stone. For many more years, I blamed myself.
The actress has since secured multiple alternative domains including EmmaStone.world and EmmaStone.life. Her message urged viewers to avoid “years and years of anguish” by registering domains early.
Brand Rivalries Played Out On Screen
Pepsi took direct aim at Coca-Cola in filmmaker Taika Waititi’s commercial. The spot featured a distressed polar bear—typically associated with Coke—discovering he preferred Pepsi Zero Sugar in blind taste tests.
Matthew McConaughey and Philadelphia Eagles superfan Bradley Cooper faced off for Uber Eats. McConaughey tried convincing Cooper that football exists primarily as a vehicle for food brands.
Sports Stars Showed Their Comedic Chops
Kendall Jenner poked fun at her dating history for Fanatics Sportsbook. The model joked about the supposed “curse” affecting her NBA player ex-boyfriends’ careers post-breakup.
How do you think I afford all of this? Modeling?
Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry joined Kathryn Hahn for Oikos yogurt. The Agatha All Along star pushed a San Francisco trolley car uphill to demonstrate protein-fueled strength.
Lewis Pullman played “Greg,” the lone non-athlete among friends including Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim and hockey player TJ Oshie. Kurt Russell helped Greg learn skiing in the Michelob Ultra spot.
Nostalgia Reunited Beloved Casts
Jeff Goldblum, Laura Dern, and Sam Neill returned to Jurassic Park for Xfinity. Their commercial reimagined the classic film with reliable internet service keeping dinosaurs safely contained.
Ben Affleck brought together sitcom legends for Dunkin’ Donuts, his fourth consecutive Super Bowl commercial for the brand. Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, Jason Alexander, and Ted Danson joined Tom Brady for a Good Will Hunting parody.
Last year, Affleck appeared with then-wife Jennifer Lopez as part of music group “The DunKings.” His continued partnership with Dunkin’ has become an annual Super Bowl tradition.
Health Messaging Mixed With Humor
Novartis promoted prostate cancer blood testing with “Relax Your Tight End,” featuring NFL tight ends including Rob Gronkowski and George Kittle. Set to soothing Enya music, former and current players practiced yoga and pool relaxation.
Manscaped continued their tradition of unconventional grooming commercials. This year’s version gave voices to bathroom hair clumps that also performed musical numbers.
Technology Brands Showcased Innovation
Chris Hemsworth starred in Amazon’s Alexa+ commercial alongside wife Elsa Pataky. The action star initially resisted AI assistance, listing potential dangers, before being won over by massage booking capabilities.
MrBeast leveraged his massive YouTube following with a Salesforce Slackbot puzzle competition. Viewers who crack the code and message Slackbot correctly could win one million dollars.
Food Brands Brought Creativity And Chaos
Andy Samberg transformed into “Meal Diamond” for Hellmann’s mayonnaise. The Brooklyn 99 star sang a “Sweet Caroline” parody while squirting mayo on sandwiches, joined by diner patron Elle Fanning.
George Clooney starred in Grubhub’s commercial about delivery fees. Playing a guest at an upscale dinner, Clooney revealed the unpalatable final course: “the fees” that Grubhub promises to eliminate.
Sabrina Carpenter’s commercial for Poppi prebiotic soda featured the “Espresso” singer dating a man made entirely of the can-shaped chips. Screaming fans tragically devoured her new boyfriend in the spot’s conclusion.
Emotional Storytelling Tugged Heartstrings
Budweiser delivered perhaps the most emotional commercial with an interspecies friendship story. A horse befriended an eagle hatchling and helped him learn flight in an ad honoring Budweiser’s 150th anniversary and America’s 250th birthday.
The commercial featured Lincoln, a real rescue eagle who performs National Anthem flights at Philadelphia Eagles home games. Animal lovers likely found themselves misty-eyed watching the touching narrative.
Unexpected Brand Choices Surprised Viewers
Guy Fieri revealed his transformation secrets for Bosch appliances. The commercial showed the celebrity chef looking unrecognizable in regular hair and slacks before Bosch helps restore his signature spiky blond look.
Adrien Brody brought dramatic intensity to tax preparation for TurboTax. Fresh off his Oscar win for The Brutalist, Brody struggled through a surprisingly subdued performance about filing taxes.
With production values rivaling short films and celebrity appearances matching awards shows, Super Bowl commercials have become cultural touchstones. Brands invested heavily not just in airtime but in storytelling that extends conversations long after the final whistle blows.