Universal Orlando’s new ad campaign has a prime position during the Super Bowl broadcast Sunday.
The series, dubbed “This Changes Everything,” includes a 60-second spot titled “Lil’ Bro” that airs just before halftime of the big game, Universal says.
Epic Universe, the resort’s theme park that opened in May, has prominence in the campaign, but its tone includes all Universal Orlando Resort parks and is built on experiences made there.
“It really is about the sum of the parts,” said Alice Norsworthy, president of global marketing for Universal Destinations & Experiences.
“We spent most of last year, really, introducing Epic Universe, because there was such a story there to tell,” she said. Last year’s Super Bowl ad for Universal featured the park’s portals to its themed lands, including Super Nintendo World and Dark Universe.
This year, “Lil’ Bro” revolves around the competitive dynamic between two young siblings. Viewers see them in their home setting, then experiencing Universal attractions such as Volcano Bay water park and Transformers: The Ride – 3D at Universal Studios Florida theme park.
The older brother repeatedly teases the younger one, calling him “little man.”
It culminates with scenes from Stardust Racers, an Epic Universe roller coaster, and the tagline “Four parks. One vacation that changes everything.”
Orlando area attractions through the years: A tourism timeline
“The transformational experience is something that we just wanted to really highlight and push and capture within 60 seconds of storytelling,” said Danny Brooke-Taylor, founder of Lucky Generals, the agency that partnered with Universal for the five-installment series.
Other ads within “This Changes Everything” include a blended family on their first vacation together, a teenager adjusting to her braces and “a group of super fans that includes one friend who just can’t seem to let loose,” Universal says. A fifth ad brings the other four stories together.
“Finding the truth and the human truth in those experiences was our start point,” Brooke-Taylor said. “And the four spots in the anthemic spot are all of us just grabbing hold of those and putting them on a pedestal and shining a light at them so that, hopefully, you recognize yourself or recognize just life and just honesty and authenticity in it.”
The spots roll out over the next few months on multiple platforms, Norsworthy said.
Universal: Comparing, contrasting Fast & Furious offering
Filming was done within the theme parks, taking over one attraction at a time.
“I guess it would have been a lot easier to build everything on CGI and do it all green screen. And we didn’t,” Brooke-Taylor said. “There again, that authenticity is just really tangible. It made it trickier, but I think it was so critical.”
Universal did not reveal the price tag for Super Bowl commercials, typically among the priciest of the year due to the enormous TV ratings the game traditionally earns. This year’s game, pitting the Seattle Seahawks against the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, will be broadcast on NBC and the Peacock streaming service, Universal’s Comcast corporate siblings. NBC and Peacock also are the providers for the upcoming Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.
Other reported Super Bowl advertisers this year include first-timer Grubhub (with George Clooney); Sofia Vergara for Skechers; Sabrina Carpenter pushing Pringles; Instacart, featuring Benson Boone and Ben Stiller; Bowen Yang for Ritz; Emma Stone appearing for Squarespace; and Rocket Mortgage with Lady Gaga covering Rollins College almnus Mr. Rogers’ “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”