Super Bowl XLIX may not have produced any commercials that will be remembered as the greatest ads of all time… but it certainly has a contender for the worst Super Bowl commercial of all time.
Nobody said that making a memorable television commercial was easy. Because the Super Bowl draws a huge audience every year, the ad industry usually tries to deliver something special that can justify spending millions of dollars for the air time. Sometimes, they even succeed.
Related: The 10 Best Ads of Super Bowl 2015
But we’re not here to celebrate the triumphs of marketing and branding. We did that last night. For this list of The 10 Worst Ads of Super Bowl 2015, we’re celebrating the epicly mediocre, the noble failures, and some of the worst decisions that were made outside of not giving the ball to Marshawn Lynch when the game was on the line.
Even in disgrace, these ads still have viewers talking about them. However, the anger over Nationwide’s commercial is challenging the notion of “any publicity is good publicity.”
Be sure to share your picks for The Worst Ads of Super Bowl 2015 in the comment section below!
Boy – Nationwide
Who was the genius that decided that the Super Bowl was the perfect time to remind people of their mortality? Given the backlash against “Boy,” said genius may want to start sending out resumes.
This ad may be called “Boy,” but it’s been rechristened by viewers as “Because I died” and it’s already become an internet meme. There’s also a big groundswell of negative emotions for this ad, which inspired Nationwide to make an attempt to justify the commercial’s subject matter.
You Know You Want a Truck – Chevy Colorado
Haven’t you heard? Only the manliest of men drive trucks. And they’re totally not compensating for something they’re lacking.
Chevy used its 2012 Super Bowl commercial to jokingly suggest that only its trucks would survive the apocalypse and anyone driving a Ford was as good as dead. At least that ad was funny. This one is just pathetic.
It All Starts with a Kick – Mountain Dew
What. The. FUCK.
Tackle It – Jublia
Want something more disgusting than the new Mountain Dew flavors? How about an ad for a new toenail fungus prescription treatment?
You don’t spend millions of dollars for a Super Bowl ad unless you think you’re reaching your target audience. So yes, that means that the makers of Jublia assume that you need their product. Yes, YOU.
But beware of the side effects that include “ingrown toenail.”
Machine Zone – Game of War
There are plenty of beautiful women in Hollywood who can act. Kate Upton is not one of them.
You may have noticed that Upton doesn’t speak in any of the footage and her lines are given entirely through voiceover. But even then, her delivery is flatter than a magazine cover.
Check out the rest of the worst on page 2!
