Recently nominated for a primetime Emmy, this Squarespace spot titled “Calling JohnMalkovich.com” debuted on this year’s Super Bowl telecast.
In the humorous ad, actor Malkovich is in his fashion design studio talking on the phone to someone who has already claimed the domain name JohnMalkovich.com. This raises the question of who is being John Malkovich as the famous thespian tries to convince the other Malkovich to give him back his “rightful” domain name.
Miles Jay of Smuggler directed for agency JohnXHannes, New York.
Credits
Client Squarespace Agency JohnXHannes New York John McKelvey, Hannes Ciatti, executive creative directors; Kristine Ling, executive producer; Conor Hagan, sr. art director; Matt McCarron, sr. copywriter. Production Smuggler Miles Jay, director; Allison Kunzman, Patrick Milling-Smith, Brian Carmody, exec producers; Chayse Irvin, DP; Carly Reddin, production designer; Jurgen Doering, stylist. Production Services Premiere Heure, Paris. Catherine Guillot, Parisian producer; Alex Orlovsky, U.S. line producer. Editorial NO6 Chan Hatcher, editor; Kenneth Larkin, Randy Baublis, assistant editors; Carr Schilling, managing director; Malia Rose, Michelle Dorsch, producers. VFX NO7 Verdi Sevenhuysen, VFX artist. Audio Post Formosa John Bolen, mixer; Lauren Cascio, exec producer. Color Company 3 Tom Poole, colorist; Clare Movshon, producer.
How do you top one of the most viral brand videos ever made? Spoiler alert: you can’t. 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 “Club” that people would love to join while showcasing Dollar Shave Club’s products and embracing the weird. From script to direction and post, Seckler--an alum of SHOOT’s 2021 New Directors Showcase--was invited to help sculpt that vision.
The result is this “Welcome to the Club” 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."
“The Club” 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.
