Following the success of last year’s ad for The Handmaid’s Tale, Hulu is once again using the game as a platform to promote a new show.
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A promo for 10-episode series Castle Rock from J.J. Abrams and Stephen King will run during the second quarter on Sunday, February 4, as the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles head into halftime.
The game will air on NBC, which owns a 30 percent stake in Hulu.
Hulu joins the ranks of those willing to spend $5 million on a 30-second ad. Last year’s success paid off, with The Handmaid’s Tale going on to become the first show on a streaming platform to win for outstanding drama in the Emmys.
NBC has kept the door closed on advertising from rival broadcasters, but has allowed commercials for original series from streamers, including Netflix which ran a Stranger Things spot during the Super Bowl last year, and Amazon Prime Video, whichhas taken out its first Super Bowl ad on Sunday to promote its Jack Ryan series based on the Tom Clancy books.
The Castle Rock trailer marks the fourth time Hulu has advertised during the Super Bowl. In 2012 the company ran spots for An Evil(er) Plot to Destroy and World starring Will Arnett, and in 2009 ran Alec in Huluwood starring Alec Baldwin.
The psychological horror series takes a spooky deep dive into King’s multiverse, weaving together characters and situations from the author’s works with narratives that brush up against moments from other storylines.
For instance, in the promo set in King’s fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine, Sheriff Alan Pangborn (played by Scott Glenn, but previously portrayed by Ed Harris in the 1993 movie Needful Things) receives a call that André Holland of Shawshank Redemption fame is returning home. The series also stars Carrie’s Sissy Spacek, although she plays Ruth Deaver rather than Carrie.
Castle Rock also stars Melanie Lynskey, and Bill Skarsgård, with Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason as executive producers and writers.
It’s set to premiere this summer.
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