Kevin Durant Schools Sonic’s ‘Two Guys’ in the Brand’s First Athlete-Backed Ad

After signing Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant last year, Sonic Drive-In's first ad campaign with the reigning NBA MVP from Goodby Silverstein & Partners puts a new twist on the brand's classic "Two Guys" ads.

Starting today and continuing through August, 15- and 30-second spots will run on TV, online and on social media. The first 15-second ad plays off of the typical "Two Guys"—played by T. J. Jagodowski and Peter Grosz—commercials and takes place at a drive-in restaurant. But the second ad, a 30-second spot, got the brand to think more outside the box, said Sonic CMO Todd Smith.

"Incorporating Kevin allowed us to take the two guys out of the car and into new and unexpected scenarios that hadn't previously been explored," Smith said. "Kevin is naturally funny, and the creative concepts played off his personality, which was a perfect combination [of] Pete and TJ's style of humor–Kevin even ad-libbed a line or two."

In the longer ad, set in a gym, Durant takes on the two guys in basketball.

The ads promote two new flavors of Sonic Slushes made with Nerds candies. The All Star is a blue raspberry-flavored drink, and the Game Changer is a lemon and strawberry concoction.

"We saw this as a perfect opportunity to collaborate and introduce Kevin to our culinary innovation process, while getting really creative with one of our iconic menu offerings," Smith said.

Sonic is bringing back Nerds-filled Slushes after a successful trial last year. USA Today reports the drinks continued to sell at roughly 50 percent of summer levels after the summer ended. The brand has run similar limited-time drinks in the past, including a mystery flavor that was only promoted on social media last year.

CREDITS

Ad Agency: Goodby Silverstein & Partners

Client:  Sonic

Brand: Sonic Drive-In

Title of Creative Work: "One on One on One" :30 / "Dunk" :15

Live Dates: 4/27/15

Sonic

CEO and President: Cliff Hudson

SVP and CMO: Todd Smith

Director of Brand Advertising: Molly Brill

GS&P

Creative

Executive Creative Director/Partner: Margaret Johnson

ACD/Writer: Jon Wolanske

Art Director: Sean Smith

Copywriter: Kevin Steele

Production

Director of Broadcast Production: Tod Puckett

Broadcast Producer: Matthew Winks

Broadcast Producer: Christine Oh

Assistant Broadcast Producer: Christina Wells

Account Services

Group Account Director: Leslie Barrett

Account Director: Jenna Duboe

Account Manager: Melody Cheung

Assistant Account Manager: Olivia Mullen

Brand and Communication Strategy

Group Brand Strategy Director: Bonnie Wan

Senior Brand Strategist: Melanie Wong

Brand Strategist: Suhail Shaikh

Group Communication Strategy Director: Dong Kim

Senior Communication Strategist: John-James Richardson

Research & Analytics Director: Heather Barrett

Business Affairs

Director of Business Affairs: Bess Cocke

Business Affairs Associate Director: Judy Ybarra

Business Affairs Manager: Jane Regan

Business Affairs Manager: Chrissy Shearer

Senior Broadcast Traffic Manager: Edgar Ornelas

Outside Vendors

Production Company: Biscuit Filmworks

Director: Clay Weiner

Managing Director: Shawn Lacy

Executive Producer: Holly Vega

Head or Production: Rachel Glaub

Producer: Lisa Stockdale

Editorial: Arcade

Managing Partner: Damian Stevens

Executive Producer: Nicole Visram

Senior Editor: Nick Rondeau

Editor: Healy Snow

Online/VFX: Timber

Managing Partner: Damian Stevens

Creative Directors/Partners: Jonah Hall & Kevin Lau

Executive Producer: Chris Webb

Lead Flame Artist: Chris Homel

Audio Mix: Lime Studios

Mixer: Joel Waters

Assistant Mixer: Kayla Phungglan