There are bad celebrity ad concepts—like Paris Hilton seemingly attempting to turn a sloppy Carl's Jr. burger into masturbatory material—and then there are fantastically creative ones. I'm going to go ahead and file Robin Williams' commercial for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D under the second category, because this video is a little piece of marketing genius.
Perfectly timed for the game's Father's Day release, the spot shows Robin Williams confusing his 23-year-old daughter, Zelda Williams, with the video game princess of the same name. At the end, it's revealed he's such a fan he really named his daughter after the game.
It's cute, it's eye-grabbing (that beard! Who knew Robin Williams turned into a member of ZZ Top?), and best of all, it gives you the sense the spokesperson truly does love the product.
The commercial is so well done, it got me thinking how rare it is to see a really top quality celebrity ad that doesn't make you cringe in embarrassment for the paycheck-collecting A-lister. Here's a collection of celeb ads that absolutely do not suck, starting with Robin Williams:
Robin Williams, Legend of Zelda.
Seriously, what's not to like about this? And how adorable is his daughter?
Bill Cosby, Jello Pudding.
One of the all-time classics, nostalgia at its finest. Although I don't remember Cosby being quite so licky.
Michael Imperioli, 1800 Silver Tequila.
Funny, short and sweet. Clever idea to market this premium tequila with the The Sopranos Chrissy Moltisanti-esque swagger.
Justin Bieber & Ozzy Osbourne, Best Buy.
I love absolutely everything about this deliciously self-mocking ad. It actually makes me laugh out loud, particularly the bit at the end. What's a Bieber, indeed.
Wes Anderson, American Express.
Having Wes Anderson (of The Royal Tenenbaums fame) direct his own ad, thus bringing his distinctive style to a credit card commercial? GENIUS.
Dean Winters, Allstate.
Best celebrity campaign of ALL TIME. These "Mayhem" spots are so consistently awesome I not only pause my TiVo fast-forwarding to watch them, I've looked them all up on YouTube, too. Love Dean Winters, love these ads.
Can you think of any amazing celebrity ads I missed?
Image via YouTube
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