In years past we’ve had commercials for some of the year’s most anticipated films run during the Super Bowl. I remember getting the first look at THE HULK in a Super Bowl ad as well as ones for SPIDER-MAN 2, GLADIATOR, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 2 and a lot more. This year? Not so much. AdAge is reporting that only two studios have secured time to run a movie ad during the championship game. Lionsgate will run a spot promoting the upcoming Terrence Howard/Bernie Mac sports drama PRIDE while Disney will promote their upcoming animated film MEET THE ROBINSONS and the John Travolta comedy WILD HOGS. DreamWorks will push NORBIT during the pre-game while Sony has a GHOST RIDER ad before kickoff as well. The reasoning for the sudden shift likely involves money (almost $2.5 million for a :30 spot) and the fact that a lot of the year’s biggest films are already established commodities (PIRATES, SPIDER-MAN) who don’t need additional, expensive promotion. Studios also seem more likely to focus on their target audiences with cheaper ad campaigns during shows like “Heroes” or “Grey’s Anatomy” (Warner Bros. recently ran an exclusive look at 300 during “Heroes”). Whatever is run before, during and after the game, check back on not-so-Super Monday for a wrapup.
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