Leading up to its Dec. 14 release,
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse will receive an extra $115M promotional boost from an array of global brands, making it one of
Sony’s largest in the studio’s history, up there with
Spider-Man: Homecoming which counted a $140M value.
Spider-Verse also outstrips the recent $80M global brand
promo of Universal/Illumination’s The Grinch.
Typically brands at this time of year seek to capitalize on Christmastime to drive sales, but the fact that they’re partnering with Spider-Man speaks to his commercial power, arguably up there with
Star Wars.
“This is taking Spider-Man to a new level. The film has a revolutionary hero in Miles Morales and a unique and groundbreaking style of animation to match – so it mandated a campaign that complements the film’s originality and creativity,” explains Jeffrey Godsick, Sony’s EVP of Worldwide Partnerships and Brand Management about the promo campaign.
“The message of
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is that anyone can wear the mask – it’s who you are that makes you a hero. That’s a message that resonates with these incredible global brands and sets a tone that this film will go beyond the box office to become a true worldwide event,” adds Sony President of Worldwide Marketing and Distribution Josh Greenstein.
Here’s the rundown of who is tubthumping
Spider-Verse which not only canvasses food, consumer products, and tech fare, but socially-aware non-profits as well, i.e. The
Ad Council will utilize the pic’s characters in an anti-bullying campaign:
Spider-Man has long been available inside
McDonalds‘ Happy Meals and this time around Sony Animation is creating the first ever animated Happy Meal TV spot using the pic’s unique animation style. In another first, Australia McDonald’s locations will feature a special ‘double height’ Happy Meal box that resembles a skyscraper, with the characters from
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse swinging around it.
Synchrony Bank has recently been a committed partner to Marvel movies, tying its “Save Like a Hero” campaign with Disney/Marvel’s
Avengers: Infinity War. Synchrony is building on that message again with a
Spider-Verse-inspired installation in Brooklyn that recreates a number of set pieces and elements of the movie for an experiential event, as well as running their Hero message on their website and in ads.
Nike will be selling the Air Jordans that
Spider-Verse protagonist Miles Morales wears in the film. The brand will also create an influencer program, special outdoor executions, and retail promotions.
If you’re looking for breakfast, specifically
General Mills cereal, you’ll find
Spider-Verse plastered on 12M boxes of its various brands at 10K retailers, coast-to-coast. See promo below:
It would be unusual to have a
Spider-Man movie without a toy line and
Hasbro has been behind creating the
Spider-Verse toy line, introducing the characters Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, sp//DR in TV spots and retails shelves.
Kids traveling on the
Genting Cruise Lines are bound to meet Spider-Man at see in the ship’s
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse-themed experience (see our featured image above). Over 100 cruise trips will offer film-themed meal experiences and interactive activities to 500K passengers on board five select Dream Cruises and Star Cruises ships.
Being seen in the digital and tech space is key for
Spider-Verse and Sony has had a forte in reaching millennial moviegoers in its thrifty online outreach with such movies as
Baby Driver, Sausage Party and
The Shallows. As such,
Spider-Verse has partnered with many listed below, including
eBay which is running a “It’s Happening in eBay” television campaign that highlights the pop cultural relevance of the film.
Spidey will make a big footprint in China reaching 800M people with Tencent QQ’s comprehensive campaign across their entire platform featuring augmented reality, digital applications and film-themed digital stickers along with various banners and traditional display advertising. The QQ brand can also be seen in
Spider-Verse.
Other tech partners include Telecommunications company
Vodafone which has a
Spider-Verse campaign in 19 markets and reaching 8K-plus retailers with the slogan “Do It Like You”. There’s a mentor-ship theme in the movie, and Vodaphone’s
Spider-Verse promotion dovetails with their “Future Jobs Finder,” a pro-social initiative to help young adults find careers in the tech space.
Garmin has a Spidey-themed promo app to help kids keep track of their daily movement and activity by setting fitness goals.
Adobe has also been involved in creating behind the scenes content which they’ve showed off at their AdobeMax conference, while stylus-tablet leader
Wacom had a presence at 13 comic-cons and animation conventions around the globe for its
Spider-Verse tie-in at 1,5K retailers in 17 markets. The tech brand will also launch its own exclusive behind-the-scenes featurette on the making of the movie.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is expected to open to north of $30M at the domestic B.O. on Dec. 14. The movie already boasts a 100% Rotten Tomatoes Score from 33 critics.
