Ludicrous Product Placements in Movies

Ludicrous Product Placements in Movies

Today we ogle shocking examples of product placement in movies, then admit Will Smith could sell us absolutely anything. By Jove, it’s epic fails all round.

Product placement has long been a part of the movie business. Just because it tickled our fancy, we’ve rounded up some of the most obvious and unsubtle product placements ever seen on the big screen.

Next time you’re watching something at Meadowhall cinema (my local. I’ll be the one shielding my eyes behind vintage sunglasses and stuffing my squirrely face with salt/sweet popcorn) or your nearest cinema (after all, I recognise that not all of you live in Sheffield), see if you can spot any that can beat these howlers.

Food

Well, if it’s good enough for Leonardo, it’s good enough for us…

There are lots of movie references to fast food chains like Burger King and McDonalds, but perhaps one of the most unsubtle food references ever was when the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles tucked into a box of Domino’s Pizza in their 1990 big screen adventure.

Drink

Scott Pilgrim? More like Scott ‘Coke Zero’ Pilgrim. Because that’s what his, you know, friends call him.

Drinks are always easy to get in shot, but some movie makers take it to extremes. In Scott Pilgrim vs the World (2010), Scott held a can of Coke Zero to his forehead and his fingers were carefully spread so that we could all see the can labelling very clearly. Then there was Rene Russo taking a long swig of Pepsi One in full view of the camera in The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) and Daniel Craig enjoyed a special pensive moment lying in bed with a Bond Girl and a bottle of Heineken in Skyfall (2012).

Cars

Hi. I’m literally the coolest person in the world. You want to be me. You want to be in me. I drive an Acura.

Of course, if a movie features a lot of driving, it’s difficult not to include shots of a car or two. But there are some movies which feel more like car ads first and movies second! Examples include Avengers (2012), featuring the Acura and the scene in Goldeneye (1995) with Pierce Brosnan and Q looking over the new BMW that Bond has to drive. Then there’s the Mini Cooper in The Italian Job (2003) and the H2 Hummer in Bad Boys II (2003).

Money

We couldn’t find a picture of the scene but it looked like this.

A Capital One bank card was placed clearly (and needlessly) in view when James Franco was looking through what kit he could access with his free hand in 127 hours (2010).

Trainers

I, Robot? More like I, Converse. Note: This does actually make us want to buy Converse. Well played, Will Smith. Well played.

Nothing beats a product placement moment like a lead character tie-ing his shoe laces. Look out for the Converse trainers on Will Smith’s feet in I, Robot (2004) and the pair of Nike in Terminator (1990). Nike also featured in Michael J Fox’s Back to the Future (1995).

Clothes

There’s a whole scene devoted to The Gap in Reality Bites in 1994, and the worldwide clothing chain gets an insulting, but still brand-highlighting mention in Crazy Stupid Love (2011) when Ryan Gosling’s character slaps Steve Carrell across the face and says “You are better than The Gap”.

To be fair, this guy’s different 😉