How does Carl’s Jr./Hardee’s celebrate the release of their Most American Thickburger–which includes a split hot dog, Lays Kettle Cooked Potato Chips atop a charbroiled 100 percent Black Angus hamburger patty, American cheese, served on a fresh baked bun?
The selected means of celebrating the over-the-top burger is an over-the-top “Most American Thing Ever” commercial directed by Baker Smith of harvest for 72andSunny.
The ad opens on Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue 2014 Rookie of the Year model Samantha Hoopes eating a Most American Burger—in a hot tub. The hot tub is in a pickup truck driven by professional bull rider Douglas Duncan. The truck is on an aircraft carrier, next to the Statue of Liberty–under fireworks.
The featured pickup truck was custom built by 72andSunny, Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s by fusing two separate trucks together and adding a hot tub to the bed of the massive vehicle.
The spot debuts on June 1, sandwiched between two of America’s most patriotic holidays, Memorial Day and Independence Day.
Credits
Client Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s Agency 72andSunny Glenn Cole, chief creative officer; Justin Hooper, Mick DiMaria, group creative directors; Tim Wettstein, creative director/designer; Mark Maziarz, creative director/writer; Ryan Davis, designer; Reilly Baker, jr. writer; Matt Johnson, group strategy director; Eddie Moraga, strategist; Sam Baerwald, director of film production; Molly McFarland, executive film producer; Juliet Diamond, sr. film producer; Brooke Horne, film producer; Kira Linton, jr. film producer; Taylor Stockwell, film production coordinator. Production harvest Baker Smith, director; Bonnie Goldfarb, co-founder/executive producer; Rob Sexton, exec producer; Niko Whelan, head of production; Vincent Oster, producer. Editorial Rock Paper Scissors Christjan Jordan, editor; Angela Dorian, exec producer. VFX Jam Visual Inc. Jake Montgomery, Andy Boyd, VFX supervisors; Asher Edwards, producer. Post Beach House Mike Pethel, colorist; Denise Brown, producer. Audio On Music and Sound Chris Winston, composer/sound designer.
How do you top one of the most viral brand videos ever made? Spoiler alert: you canโt. But when Dollar Shave Club tapped Zack Seckler to direct a new campaign to revive the absurdist humor of its iconic launch video, he knew he had a rare opportunity to create something special.
The brief was simple: introduce the concept of a physical โClubโ that people would love to join while showcasing Dollar Shave Clubโs products and embracing the weird. From script to direction and post, Seckler--an alum of SHOOTโs 2021 New Directors Showcase--was invited to help sculpt that vision.
The result is this โWelcome to the Clubโ spot which invites us to join a unique, seemingly exclusive but in reality an accessible and affordable fraternity of Dollar Shave Club members. But you need to know the password or more accurately, the two-word phrase--"shave money."
โThe Clubโ campaign brings the brand back to its humorous roots, reflecting a new chapter after being acquired by Nexus Capital Management from Unilever in late 2023. The work takes Dollar Shave Club back to its disruptive beginnings and what made the brand a viral sensation from its inception in 2011.
