Patrick Stewart's Super Bowl 2024 Commercial Is A Violent Mashup You Can't Miss
The recent ad campaign for Paramount+ has been a mite surreal. In them, a group of fictional characters, each from various Paramount-owned properties, find themselves lost on Paramount Mountain — a desolate and snowy place — wondering how they might escape. The ads are fun, as there are few places where one might see Peppa Pig and Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen interacting with Beavis and Butt-Head. Several of the spots were narrated by Patrick Stewart and, throughout the campaign, featured cameos from "Survivor" host Jeff Probst, Captain Pike from "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" as played by Anson Mount, Dora the Explorer, James Corden, Bumblebee the Transformer, Snooki, DJ Khaled, Diane Lockhart from "The Good Fight" as played by Christine Baranski, Lieutenant Jim Dangle from "Reno 911!" as played by Thomas Lennon, and many, many others. In one of the more recent ads, Sylvester Stallone appears as his character from "Cliffhanger" to climb a face of Paramount Mountain that ... looks like Sylvester Stallone's face.
The ads are, of course, all constructed on a green screen with actors filmed at different times, but the mash-up is still winky fun.
The Super Bowl, as we all know, is a notable rock concert, accompanied by a bonanza of high-end TV ads. There may also be a football game involved. For the upcoming 58th Super Bowl, set to be played on February 11, 2024, Paramount+ has outdone themselves, providing a two-minute commercial spot wherein Patrick Stewart actually appears on camera (as himself), and features the 83-year-old actor hurling Arnold from "Hey, Arnold!" like a football. This was after Miami Dolphins quarterback Tuanigamanuolepola Tagovailoa revealed that he was unable to hurl a grappling hook with any accuracy.
Like the best Super Bowl ads, this new spot for Paramount+ is certainly eye-catching.
What is happening??
For the Super Bowl spot, Stewart, Tagovailoa, and Arnold are joined by Probst, Jim Dangle, Knuckles the Echidna, Dora, Peppa, Mater Chief from "Halo," and Drew Barrymore. Needing to scale a wall, the group needs to throw a grappling hook. It's Stewart who suggests hucking Arnold, as he has a football-shaped head. Barrymore is reticent, but Stewart gets to yell, "Barrymore, shut your face!" As Stewart gears up to throw Arnold, Creed appears on a nearby bluff to serenade him with their hit song "Higher."
Stewart and Arnold briefly sing Creed. This is like something out of a dream. When Arnold doesn't quite get the job done, Stewart wonders if there is someone nearby made of pigskin. Oh, right. Peppa Pig is nearby. I'm not exactly sure how Creed is associated with a Paramount+ show, but it's fine if they want to tag along.
I appreciate that Paramount+ is indeed selling a lot of their newer, original fare, but also advertising the fact that they have reruns. Stewart just finished his run on "Star Trek: Picard," but the streaming service also has every episode of "Star Trek: The Next Generation." "Hey, Arnold!" was just rebooted in 2023, but the original 1996 series is also still available. Knuckles was featured in "Sonic the Hedgehog 2," a film that came out in 2022.
Yes, the original programming is fun, but with the entire "Paramount Mountain" ad campaign, the network seems to (at least tangentially) acknowledge they have a large back catalog as well. That's appreciated.