Struggling Bud Light unveils new ‘Bud Light Genie’ character for $7M Super Bowl commercial that includes cameos by Payton Manning, Post Malone and UFC chief Dana White as it tries to claw back customers after Dylan Mulvaney fiasco
Bud Light has unveiled their new Super Bowl commercial, complete with star-studded cameos, as the company tries to win over customers after a disastrous year.
The beer brand, the official beer sponsor of the NFL, is trying to reverse course and lean on past Super Bowl ads full of humor, characters and stars.
Bud Light veteran Post Malone, NFL legend Peyton Manning and staunchly anti-woke UFC chief Dana White all appear in the new commercial.
They join the new character born in the commercial known as “the Bud Light genius.”
The move comes less than 12 months after their disastrous collaboration with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Peyton Manning is one of the stars featured in the new commercial premiering Sunday during the Super Bowl
Bud Light veteran Post Malone appears in the new Super Bowl commercial, marking his third appearance with the brand
Sales of the beer suffered from the move, largely due to a boycott of the beer, with sales in the first two weeks of 2024 down 28.9 percent from the year before.
Based on last year’s Super Bowl ad rates, the 60-second commercial could cost as much as $14 million.
In an interview, Todd Allen, VP of marketing at Bud Light, said, “We wanted to put fans first in everything we do, so you’ll see unparalleled access and epic experiences that turn into great content.
‘Humor was also important. You know, we’ve been making Super Bowl ads since 1983. Some of the most iconic ads are based on humor.
‘So we’re bringing that lightheartedness back a bit, more to the foreground. And the third thing was talent.
“You know, we’ve been at the intersection of sports and music and culture and entertainment for four years and we’ve made some great friends along the way and we wanted to bring some of those old partners into the mix as well. ‘
As for the use of celebrities in the commercial, Allen said the brand has decided to go “big” this year.
He added, “We wanted to call on those longtime friends of the brand to come along with us and they are all aligned with the passion points and platforms that our fans know and love about Bud Light and expect from us.”
The move comes less than 12 months after their disastrous collaboration with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney – seen here
The commercial follows a group of friends who release the Bud Light spirit from a bottle of beer.
The genie proceeds to grant the group’s wishes, including Peyton Manning joining them and Post Malone organizing a backyard concert.
Dana White can also be seen hosting a weigh-in with members of the friend groups.
Post Malone said in a statement: “I’m here for the three-peat and am excited to be back with Bud Light for my third Super Bowl commercial.
“Together we’ve created something truly epic and damn funny that I know fans will love.”
Manning added, “We had a lot of fun making this commercial, and I’m sure many people will think about what they would wish for if they were lucky enough to meet the Bud Light Genie.”
While Dana White said, “Tthe cast, director and Peyton were fun to work with and it was such an incredible way to kick off my new partnership with AB and Bud Light.”
Dana White is also seen hosting a weigh-in with members of the Friends groups, seen here
Last October, Anheuser-Busch announced a six-year partnership with the UFC.
A source familiar with the deal told CNBC at the time that it was worth “well into nine figures.”
During last April’s controversial promotion, Mulvaney posted a video of herself opening a Bud Light on her Instagram page.
She showed off the personalized tin with her face on it – one of many freebies she received and promoted to her millions of followers.
Bud Light was accused of alienating its traditional customer base by partnering with Mulvaney, prompting many conservatives – including Kid Rock – to boycott the brand.
The setback led to plummeting sales and the takeover of Modelo Especial as America’s number one beer brand.
Anheuser-Busch lost $390 million in sales in the second quarter compared to the previous year.
In a post to the brand’s Instagram account last week, they confirmed that Gillis, seen here, was now part of the team
Gillis shared images of himself being put to work at the Anheuser-Busch Brewery in St. Louis, Missouri
By December, sales of the beer had still not recovered, despite the company partnering with NFL stars in a marketing campaign in an effort to boost sales.
In the four weeks ended December 9, Bud Light retail sales fell 28 percent compared to the same period in 2022.
Last week, the company announced that it had entered into a new partnership with comedian Shane Gillis.
In a post on the brand’s official Instagram account, they confirmed that Gillis, 36, was now part of the team.
The comedian was previously fired from Saturday Night Live after videos emerged of him making racist and homophobic comments during a podcast in 2019.