D&G’s New Blake Griffin/Jack McBrayer Spots for Kia Fail to Deliver

By Erik Oster 

Back in October, we brought you news of David&Goliath’s new campaign for Kia Optima starring L.A. Clippers power forward Blake Griffin and Jack McBrayer (an actor best known for his work on 30 Rock) as a superhero team saving people from non-Kia purchases. We were a bit disappointed with the initial spot, but hoped that the spot’s title “Trailer” indicated it was just a teaser for things to come. Now, David&Goliath have released two new spots for the campaign, “Zipline” (featured above) and “Apologize to You.” Unfortunately, both fail to live up to the potential of the premise.

“Zipline” features Blake Griffin and sidekick Jack McBrayer crashing in on a lame Internet shopping session. They present the Optima as a better option, to a man who is understandably freaked out by this series of events. Griffin and McBrayer have good chemistry together, but the spot fails to capitalize on it and ultimately falls flat. It might help if the two interacted more, instead of seemingly splitting screen time in separate shots.

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That “Zipline” is actually the better of the two spots should tell you something about “Apologize to You.” The spot features Griffin and a fire extinguisher-wielding McBrayer demanding a passerby apologize for not selecting the Optima. It’s repetitive to say the least, lacking any real substance in exchange for a failed attempt at cheap laughs. Hopefully, the folks over at David&Goliath can rebound from these efforts, as we still think this campaign has the potential to be funny. Credits and “Apologize to You” after the jump.

Credits:

Chief Creative Officer: David Angelo

Executive Creative Director: Colin Jeffery

Senior Copywriter: Dan Kelly

Senior Art Director: Todd Rone Parker

Executive Broadcast Producer, Managing Director: Carol Lombard

Executive Producer: Christopher Coleman

Managing Partner, Client Services: Brian Dunbar

Group Account Director: Brook Dore

Account Director: Mike O’Malley

Account Supervisor: Stacy Garibay

Account Executive: Ashley Standridge

Account Coordinator: Lauren Kelley

Senior Strategic Planner: Steven Garcia

Director Business Affairs: Rodney Pizarro

Product Information Manager: Russ Wortman

 

Production Company: PrettyBird

Director: Paul Hunter

Executive Producer: Kerstin Emhoff

Executive Producer: Ali Brown

Head of Production: Tracy Hauser

Line Producer: Leora Glass

 

Editorial: Whitehouse Post

Editor: Corky DeVault

Editor: Lucas Spaulding

Editor: James Dierx

Assistant Editor: Sam Perkins

Producer: Joanna Manning

Executive Producer: Joni Williamson

 

Visual Effects: Mass Market

Head of CGI / Director of VFX: Andy Jones

VFX Supervisor: Diego Vazquez

Producer: Shannon Alexander

Executive Producer: JJ Wilmoth

Managing Director: Jay Lichtman

 

Music, Sound Design & Mix: Barking Owl

 

 

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