Strikingly stylish, beautifully minimalistic, elegantly black & white. And that’s just the visual splendour of adidas Originals’ new campaign by Johannes Leonardo for the Superstar sneaker.

Samuel L. Jackson stars in and narrates a teaser, called Pyramids – a musing on the wonder of the edifices that were built to last – and the hero commercial, Clocks – a discussion about the majesty of the timepieces against in-and-out trends. Both narrations underline the timeless nature of the Superstar, while a montage of cameos by a vast cast of culture leaders underscores its appeal.

Those leaders include musician, Missy Elliott; skateboarder, Mark Gonzales; rapper, GloRilla; singer-songwriter, Teezo Touchdown; K-pop star, Jennie; model-actress, Gabbriette; and NBA all-star, Anthony Edwards.

Both Johannes Leonardo-created commercials were produced by Division, and directed by Thibaut Grevet.

The Superstar was born in 1969 as a basketball shoe. (Its predecessor, the Supergrip, had been launched nine years earlier). By 1970, it had already gained a fan following outside the court. Then in 1986, Run-DMC paid homage to the brand and the band’s beloved Superstar sneakers in the song, My adidas. The shoe has been led by its fashion-music-culture associations ever since. The Run DMC Superstar is still popular.

The new work builds on adidas’ The Original campaign, also directed by Thibaut Grevet and launched in March this year with the message, “The film is just the starting point. It just takes one. Before there can be a thousand. There’s always The Original.”