Athletes have long been pitching products in TV commercials, but few bring the energy Bills quarterback Josh Allen does to the set. Former TBWA/Chiat/Day creative director Alex Bower, who wrote Allen's 2024 Gatorade campaign, recalls that while some athletes limit their takes, Allen shot full-speed throws on a hot day in Los Angeles. "He gave us a lot of takes of him running lines and throwing the ball full pelt," Bower said. "He committed."
Allen, the Buffalo Bills quarterback and betting favorite for the NFL MVP award (+280 on Draft Kings entering Week 5), is a seasoned commercial performer. He has endorsed Nike, New Era, New Balance, Nationwide and Natrol Sleep. He also runs his own production studio and is married to Academy Award-nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld. Ahead of the Bills' Monday Night Football matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, Allen's Hollywood experience stands out.
His latest work with Wonderful Pistachios required filming four TV spots in six to eight hours on one of three summer days. Allen's family owns a pistachio farm, so the partnership is as much business as pitchman work. Wonderful's chief creative officer Bobby Pearce and executive creative director Steve Yee say Allen does not behave like someone treating the deal as purely transactional. "He's hanging out with us and sitting amongst us at Video Village," Yee said.
Allen's friendliness on set goes further. He gets to know cast and crew, banters, and in the first year of the Wonderful partnership, he and his co-star laughed so much that producers had to ask them to settle down. Bower said Allen became friends with crew members the team had worked with before, which is unusual for an athlete. As Allen puts it, "I just try to be myself."
Source: ESPN NFL · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing