In a tweet on Super Bowl Sunday, Idris Elba wrote: “I had fun making the @bookingcom commercial for the Big Game. Here are some of the bits that didn’t make it.” He linked to a YouTube video in which he’s seen laughing over flubbed lines, hurting himself while trying to chop wood, asking a fellow actor, “Do you think I’m sexy?,” miming going down stairs, slapping an inflatable flamingo (you heard us!), and declaring that Booking.com is “funny as f***.”
It’s all in the name of the “simple, lay-it-all-out-there honesty” that the travel website is claiming as its brand. Elba’s fans agree: “These were the best bits!” raved one. “You made it funny! You never take yourself too seriously!” tweeted another.
This is the first time that Booking.com has taken out a Super Bowl ad, which cost companies a cool $7 million per spot (via WCVB). But they believe that this is the perfect time to get their name out to the millions watching the game. With more people vaccinated against COVID-19 and more countries relaxing restrictions, interest in travel is picking up in 2022. “You can feel there’s a tremendous desire to travel right now,” Booking.com’s CEO told CNBC. “We think this is a great time to reintroduce Booking.com and bring forward this lighthearted idea of travel.”
Disclaimer: Booking a trip will not guarantee that you will see Idris Elba on your travels.
