Walmart’s holiday campaign, themed “Give the Gifts that Show You Get Them,” continues with four new spots reuniting classic TV and movie duos, including SpongeBob SquarePants and his beloved pet, Gary the Snail!
SpongeBob and Gary star in the 30-second spot below. Set in SpongeBob's pineapple abode, a big Walmart box floats down and lands at SpongeBob's front door. It turns out that it's a present from Gary to SpongeBob - a Jellyfish party lamp, which when Gary switches on (with his eye), turns SpongeBob's living room into a Jellyfish Disco, a callback to the iconic SpongeBob episode "Jellyfish Jam". The scene ends with SpongeBob saying "Now I can really party with the jellies!".
This season give the gift that shows you get them, with Walmart. Watch as SpongeBob unwraps a surprise gift from Gary that’s so great, they can’t help but dance with holiday joy!
Another spot in the campaign features a Gilmore Girls reunion. Starring Scott Patterson and Lauren Graham with a bonus cameo from Sean Gunn as Kirk Gleason and set at Luke’s Diner, the 30-second spot shows Luke giving Lorelai a Keurig coffee maker (packaged in a big Walmart box), indulging her caffeine addiction—as he jokes that she’s been “drinking him out of business.”
Two other new spots reunite classic on-screen duos from Love Jones and Crazy Rich Asians.
The full campaign includes 15 spots in addition to 60-second and 30-second ads, which also feature a short episodic clip from SpongeBob SquarePants, that kicked things off in October. The campaign, which sidesteps many of the usual Yuletide tropes to embrace moments of gift-giving shown in fizzy pop cultural clips, is a collaboration among Publicis Groupe agencies including Fallon, Publicis New York, The Community, Contender and Digitas.
The 60-second ad expands on the campaign and has something for everyone, especially if you’re fond of recognizable comic flashes in such TV series and films as SpongeBob SquarePants, Gilmore Girls, The Simpsons and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, among others.
The Gilmore Girls clip features a telling scene between the on-again/off-again couple Lorelei and Luke, whose love language seems to be sarcasm.
Lorelei hands Luke a hat (a backwards baseball cap is part of his identity). But fearful of overdoing it or seeming too sincere or emotional, she qualifies it by saying, “I just thought, God forbid, if something happens to that one….” pointing to the cap he never takes off his head.
Whereas SpongeBob is beside himself with joy at the prospect of a gift, and even Bart Simpson manages to hug Mamma Marge to thank her for a gift, albeit with an eyeroll.
These scenes are matched with exchanges between current day gift-givers (and okay, those include scenes with big blue boxes, Christmas trees, and snow.)
They seem straightforward enough, but watching closely, the team snuck in a few sugar-resistant nuggets.
A bunch of bowlers give their buddy a hideous Christmas sweater and he (lies?) “You nailed it!” And in the last scene, a maybe 8-year-old boy in flannel pajamas hugs his mom tightly as she ponders the gift he just gave her and tries to love it: a plastic water cup with a straw.
These are recognizable, and even poignant, human moments.
“We’re always looking… to build emotional connection between our brand and the customer,” Walmart Vice President of Creative David Hartman explained in a release.
The big box retailer has focused for a while on “putting the brand in culture, and culture in the brand,” according to Hartman.
That certainly was true for last year’s black Friday campaign, a clever update of the movie Mean Girls using the original featured actors Lindsay Lohan, Lacey Chabert and Amanda Seyfried, who are now mean-ish millennials and mothers. “On Wednesdays, we still wear pink” Lohan says in a voiceover, referring to the most quoted line and showing the silliness of those sacrosanct rules in the 2004 film.
This year's video anthem, in 60- and 30-second form, is directed by Alexander Payne, who has helmed movies such as The Holdovers, Sideways and Citizen Ruth, and gets to the heart of holiday gifting, for all its beautiful, thoughtful intentions and resulting hits and misses.
And “if something happens to that one,” as Lorelei delicately put it, the spot certainly reminds a gift giver where to go so that everyone gets seen and, um, as the voiceover puts it, loved.
The SpongeBob spot follows a recent promotion between Walmart and Nickelodeon to celebrate the beloved Nickelodeon animated series' landmark 25th anniversary. In October, the first of three collectible free SpongeBob virtual items became exclusively available at Walmart when customers purchased a Roblox gift card in-store or online during the month.
SpongeBob fans were able to unlock the Rainbow SpongeBob back accessory for their Roblox avatar. Additional free virtual items dropped in November and will continue in December, including a Jellyfish Surfing Patrick & Clarineting Squidward, respectively.
And to celebrate the free virtual items and 25th anniversary of SpongeBob, Walmart is inviting fans to go underwater in Bikini Bottom with the reskin of its Walmart Discovered augmented reality experience. People are able to see the free virtual item, complete a quest for free UGC, and try on and buy seasonal UGC.
Justin Breton, Head of Brand Marketing Innovation at Walmart, says: “This is the first time any brand has partnered with an IP to provide a series of collectible free virtual items with the purchase of a Roblox gift card, bringing this fandom something special for the holiday season.”
“And a shoutout to our partners at Paramount and Nickelodeon for their enthusiasm and willingness to do something new & exciting for our customers and their fans of SpongeBob.”
Watch the SpongeBob SquarePants Universe, including Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years and The Patrick Star Show on Nickelodeon and Paramount+! Try it FREE at ParamountPlus.com.
Shop SpongeBob: https://www.paramountshop.com/pages/spongebobsquarepants
Listen to The SpongeBob Musical here!
CALLING ALL GOOFY GOOBERS! (ROCK!) Are ya ready for a deep dive into the world of SpongeBob SquarePants? The SpongeBob YouTube channel is THE PLACE for all fan-favorite SpongeBob moments! Subscribe now at https://www.youtube.com/SpongeBobOfficial!
CALLING ALL GOOFY GOOBERS! (ROCK!) Are ya ready for a deep dive into the world of SpongeBob SquarePants? The SpongeBob YouTube channel is THE PLACE for all fan-favorite SpongeBob moments! Subscribe now at https://www.youtube.com/SpongeBobOfficial!
Originally published: December 05, 2024 at 01:22 GMT.
