Gambling firm Ladbrokes has today launched a new brand campaign which celebrates one of cinema’s most iconic moments – Rocky’s running scene in 1979’s ‘Rocky II’.
Ladbrokes’ latest 90-second spot, created by London agency Neverland, is set to be ‘one of the most ambitious’ uses of VFX technology ever, with large-scale digital replacement of the original crowd following Rocky using modern actors and athletes.
Centred around the tagline ‘We Play Together’, the new ad will drop on 19 August, the day before the highly anticipated heavyweight boxing bout between Oleksandr Usyk and Anthony Joshua, with planning carried out by media firm The7Stars.
The film is set to be heavily promoted over the coming weekend, featuring throughout various flagship shows such as House of the Dragon, Gogglebox and the Last Leg, alongside an accelerated YouTube push.
Neverland’s spot is also set to heavily aired across Sky and BT’s upcoming Premier League coverage, culminating in the weekend’s blockbuster north-west derby between Manchester United and Liverpool on Monday evening.
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“Creating this campaign has been incredibly challenging and exciting,” Entain’s UK brand marketing director, James Kennedy said.
“Under our endline of ‘We Play Together’ we’re bringing more entertainment and shared experiences to Ladbrokes, and we love to do this in unexpected ways.
He continued: “This scene is one of the most iconic in movie history and the Rocky Balboa character is a legend of the silver screen, so mixing things up with this piece of movie magic has been a lot of fun. We’re backing Rocky all the way!”
Neverland’s founder and acting executive creative director, Jon Forsyth added: “This is the most audacious and exciting creative idea I’ve ever been a part of.
“I can’t even begin to convey the amount of time, craft and skill that has gone into making this. It sets a new benchmark in film making and I take my red headband off to the talent who have made this crazy idea a reality. Knock out.”
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