Bring the Worst Person You Know to a Free Movie With AT&T's Ticket Twosdays

Thanks to a new promotion from AT&T Wireless, you can bring even your most annoying friend to the movies for free—because someone's gotta take that extra seat. A new campaign from BBDO New York and Atlanta educates consumers on the perks of signing up for the telecom giant's service ... and the indignities they'll suffer at the hands of people they know, thanks to programs like Ticket Twosdays, a once-a-week, buy-one-get-one-free offer in partnership with theater chains like AMC and Regal. In one ad, a professional chef invites his married pal to join him for a flick, only to be subject to an absurd volley of waffling between husband and wife about the husband's availability on a weekday evening. In another, a college student asks a classmate out on a date, only to get steamrolled by her and her boyfriend, who end up walking away with both tickets—and the hapless bachelor's phone. In a third, a young Southern woman shares her bounty with a slightly shorter, blonder version of herself, prompting a stream of parrot-like responses listing the mundane things her friend loves—to the point where it's hard to imagine her loving anything at all. In the fourth (and best) ad, a guy at a hospital bedside laments the fact that his neck-braced buddy can't join him for a showing ... only to be cut off when the patient jumps out of bed, rips out his IVs, and grabs his pills—rallying at the mere mention of a free movie. The commercials are entertaining and tightly written, if (deliberately) awkward. On further consideration, it's lamentable that their portrayals of women are generally unflattering clichés—consider the needy, indecisive wife, the manipulative co-ed and the vapid, disingenuous belle. Some of the men depicted also feel less than heroic, to be fair. It's a cringe-inducing moment when the chump Romeo's smartphone passcode is the birthday of his unrequited love; her boyfriend is also a typical meathead. The fact that people behave ridiculously, both in general and when presented with a simple and benevolent choice, seems to be the insight the campaign is skewering in its play for laughs. But it leans heavily on hackneyed tropes, and risks reinforcing gender stereotypes—insidiously, and unnecessarily, in that way the male-dominated advertising industry can sometimes do without meaning to, or even noticing. CREDITS Agency: BBDO New York Campaign: Ticket Twosdays Spot Titles: "Married Friend" "Boyfriend" "Impulsive Friend" "Sentimental Friend" Client: AT&T Chief Creative Officer Worldwide: David Lubars Chief Creative Officer New York: Greg Hahn Executive Creative Director: Matt MacDonald Creative Director//Copy Writer: Kevin Mulroy ACD//Art Director: Bianca Guimaraes Head of Integrated Production: Dave Rolfe Group Executive Producer: Julie Collins Senior Content Producer: Whitney Collins Executive Music Producer: Melissa Chester Managing Director, BBDO North America: Mark Cadman Managing Director: Doug Walker Group Account Director: Lesley Brown Account Director: Khari Mpagazehe Account Executive: Jenn Wang Production Company: Arts & Sciences Director: Matt Aselton Director of Photography: Corey Walter Executive Producer: Marc Marrie Managing Director: Mal Ward Head of Production: Christa Skotland Producer: Zoe Odlum Production Supervisor: Bailey Reeves Editing Company: Arcade Edit Editor: Dave Anderson & Sean LaGrange Executive Producer: Sila Soyer Assistant Editor: Elizabeth Parsons Visual Effects: Spontaneous Head of Production: Chris Decker Executive Producer: Bryce Edwards VFX Supervisor: Andy Milkis Sound Design (Impulsive Friend): Trinitite Sound Designer ("Impulsive Friend"): Brian Emrich Audio Mixing: Sonic Union Audio Engineer: Steve Rosen

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Bring the Worst Person You Know to a Free Movie With AT&T's Ticket Twosdays

Because you have to bring someone

Gabriel Beltrone

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Gabriel Beltrone