10 MORE Great Star Wars Commercials
Ah,
the wonderful world of advertising. Back in the days before recording shows and
PVRs you were kinda stuck watching commercials for anything and everything
during breaks in the shows you were watching.
And
yes, there have been plenty of Star Wars commercials
over the years. I’ve already done one of these in the past (check it out hereif you haven’t, it’s one of my favourites), but there are just so many great or
weird Star Wars ads that I had to do
another one. So let’s get started!
Empire Strikes Back Burger King glasses
Last
year I started off by showing Burger King’s first ever Star Wars commercials for glasses themed after the first movie, so
it’s only fitting that I start with ad for glasses based on the next one in the
trilogy here.
It’s
funny how this commercial is night and day from the one for the first movie.
The other commercial has a family hanging out in Burger King and getting all
excited over the glasses. By contrast this one’s more like “HEY KID YOU LIKE
STAR WARS? THEN COME TO BURGER KING AND GET THESE GLASSEEEEEESSSSSS” while
everything explodes in the background.
And
in keeping with tradition, let’s have a look at what eBay is asking for a
complete set of these glasses.
Not
as bad as last time, but still…yikes.
Pizza Hut/KFC/Taco Bell Crossover
Phantom
Menace was easily the biggest movie
event of the 90’s, and along with it came a lot
of wacky tie-in commercials and advertising. But honestly, this one might
be the wackiest.
This
commercial feels like the Infinity War of
it’s time. Colonel Sanders, the Taco Bell Chihuahua, and some random Pizza Hut
delivery lady adventuring through the world of Star Wars? Yes please. I don’t think I’ll ever get over seeing the
Colonel wielding a lightsaber.
There
are actually a few other Phantom Menace-themed
commercial featuring this trio, so if you’re interested in the continuing
adventures of Colonel Sanders and crew definitely keep an eye out for them.
Special Editions Pepsi
Speaking
of Phantom Menace, to build hype for
the new movie the Original Trilogy was re-screened in theaters for the first
time ever, boasting updated effects that would give viewers a glimpse for what
they could expect from the new movies. These versions of the movies would later
come to be known as the Special Editions, or, as George Lucas likes to call
them, the Only Editions.
And
this is how they decided to advertise them.
One
thing this ad does is make me want to be a theater usher. Not only do you get
to watch free movies, but you get a lightsaber too? Sign me up.
Phantom Menace Pepsi
Ladies
and gentlemen, I present to you the greatest commercial ever made.
Seriously,
I’m not kidding. I just found this one while writing this article and it’s
already probably one of my new favourites. Everything about it is just so
perfect.
A
young, unsuspecting boy is rollerblading one day when an out of control Pepsi
truck zooms past him. He then has a vision of Qui-Gon telling him that hey,
maybe it’s a good idea to chase down this crazy truck. And from there…well,
just watch for yourself.
Pringles
Sometimes
even the Dark Lord of the Sith feels snacky.
Here
we see Vader on his way to see his movie, but gets slowed down when he spots a
lone can of Pringles in a vending machine.
So,
quick question: what vending machine ever had an entire can of Pringles in it?
Like, the full size ones you see at the grocery store. I’ve never seen one of
those in a vending machine. Actually, that’s probably a good thing…
Anyways,
an usher steals the Pringles from right under Vader’s nose and eats them right
in front of the poor guy’s face. Vader ignites his lightsaber and gives chase.
Maybe after he can stop that kid from slurping his Pepsi in the theater next
door.
Vader goes to Disneyland
This
one’s more of an internet video than an ad, but I love it and this is my list
so I can cheat if I want to. Technically it’s advertising the re-opening of
Star Tours, so it’s fair game.
Vader
and his stormtrooper pals are on their way to Disneyland to check out the new
and improved Star Tours ride, but the ride is still closed. They instead decide
to go and enjoy a fun day at Disneyland while they wait.
This
ad is so great that I really hope Disney doesn’t forget about it for when
Galaxy’s Edge opens up. Can we get a sequel? Pretty please?
Dark Chocolate M&Ms
Despite
only appearing in the last 5 minutes of the movie, Vader’s presence in Revenge of the Sith was a massive part
of the advertising campaign. As someone who lived through it as a kid I saw
Vader’s helmet more than I saw Hayden Christensen’s face in 2005.
And
I distinctly remember one of the biggest tie-ins was M&Ms and their Light
Side vs. Dark Side campaign. They introduced limited edition dark chocolate
M&Ms, and if you picked those instead of the normal milk chocolate kind you
joined the Dark Side…I guess.
This
ad is great, mostly because the Red and Yellow M&Ms are such fun
characters. Seeing them interact with wild and crazy characters like Santa
Claus and Danny DeVito is great, but seeing them in Star Wars is even better.
Verizon
I
haven’t done many ads from the Sequel Trilogy era mostly because I find that a
lot of them are more concerned with selling the product than they are with
creating a funny or especially memorable Star
Wars-themed commercial. There
have been a lot of really good ones, but not many that are worth being featured
here.
This
one however is just too perfect to pass up. Honestly, I doesn’t surprise me
that slow internet is what might take down the Resistance in the end. Internet
companies make Palpatine look like a nice guy in comparison after all.
Japanese Cup Noodle
…I’m
not even sure what to say about this one. Why does Japan get all the weird commercials? First Sea Chicken and now this?
Volkswagen: “The Force”
Man,
how did I forget to talk about this the first time I did one of these lists?
Back
in 2012 this commercial was everywhere.
Seriously, it felt like you couldn’t get away from it at times. It was featured
on talk shows, there were endless amounts of parodies, and an anti-Volkswagen
company made a rebuttal ad featuring a bunch of kids dressed as the hero
characters.
And
honestly? Looking back on it now it deserved all the attention it got. This is
one of those ads that is looked back upon fondly, and for good reason. It’s
really, really sweet and hilarious at the same time. I really wish car
companies did more ads like this instead of the generic glamour shots of the
car with a pretentious voice-over.
So
those are 10 more great Star Wars commercials!
Hope you enjoyed!
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