For an actor, Ryan Reynolds is a top advertising creative talent. Were he an advertising creative, he would still be a top talent. Most of his flair for writing ads has been injected into his own brand, Aviation Gin. He has, however, also co-written a very fine campaign with TBWA/Chiat/Day for Toon Blast this year.
But back to Aviation Gin. Reynolds’ third campaign for the brand is a parody PSA, outlining the process of creating Aviation Gin. It mocks just about every pretension that’s popular currently with an elegantly subtle hand and a remarkable flair for nuanced narkiness.
“I take my responsibilities as owner of Aviation Gin seriously,” Reynolds commented. “This does not extend to our marketing, however, which I take as unseriously as humanly possible.”
And after detailing ridiculous gin-making procedures such as, misting the citrus fruits using only the tears of Aviation’s owner – Ryan Reynolds and having a Unitarian pastor ordain the bottles, which are then serenaded by fellow Canadian entertainer, Sarah McLachlan, before shipping, the video concludes with the statement, “Some might call this overkill,” Reynolds concludes. “But the next time you murder a silky smooth Aviation martini…well, who’s the killer now, asshole?”
To celebrate the new campaign (or just for the hell of it) Reynolds has a new out-of-office email at ryan@aviationgin.com, to accompany the new video. It reads:
Thank you for your email. I’m currently on a spiritual retreat with the distillers of Aviation Gin. I’m so honoured to sit in a truth-circle with this incredibly bearded group of people. Here at Aviation, I’m constantly striving to improve company culture. We don’t believe in words like, “CEO” or “Boss”. Henceforth, my colleagues will affectionately refer to me as Commander, Captain, or Commandant.
Here are the new ad’s predecessors:
Ryan Reynolds announces a merger of Aviation Gin & Virgin Atlantic (It’s not quite true)
