Beyoncé, Mr. T, and the late Carl Weathers topped EDO’s comprehensive list of most engaging celebrities featured in Super Bowl LVIII ads. The TV outcomes company scored all celebrities that were featured in national, non-entertainment Big Game spots. EDO’s ranking is scored using real-time, consumer engagement data that is proven to predict business outcomes across categories.
“Super Bowl ad effectiveness is driven by three core factors: novelty, humor, and authentic celebrity appearances,” said Kevin Krim, President & CEO, EDO. “For the past three years, our data has shown consumers are 25% more likely to engage with a brand online during the Super Bowl when there’s a featured celebrity. The sweet spot is when celebrities bring their unique personality to the ad in a way that feels authentic to both the spokesperson and the brand – like Ben Affleck, Tom Brady, and Matt Damon as the DunKings.”
Krim continued, “Celebrity appearances don’t always equal success for Super Bowl ads, so marketers must strike the right tone when building a campaign around a big name. If the celebrity doesn’t have a genuine connection to the brand, that will translate poorly to the creative.”
TOP-PERFORMING SUPER BOWL AD CELEBRITIES 2024
1. Beyoncé in Verizon’s Beyonce Breaks the Internet :60, drove +2,876% as much engagement as the median-performing Super Bowl celebrity.
2. Mr. T in Skechers’ Hands Free Slip-ins :30, +2,063%
3. Carl Weathers in FanDuel’s Gronk Missed It :30, +1,839%
4. Christopher Walken in BMW’s Talkin' Like Walken :60 +1,630%
5. Jason Momoa in T-Mobile’s That T-Mobile Home Internet Feeling :60 +1,422%
6. Lionel Messi in Michelob Ultra’s Superior Beach :60, +1,328%
7. Jennifer Lopez in Dunkin's On the Track :60, +1,211%
8. Ben Affleck in Dunkin's On the Track :60, +1,077%
9. Arnold Schwarzenegger in State Farm’s Agent State Farm :60, +760%
10. Post Malone in Bud Light’s Easy Night Out, Easy to Drink, Easy to Enjoy :60, +581%
KEY CELEBRITY AD TRENDS FROM SUPER BOWL LVIII
Super Bowl LVIII was a star-studded affair, with highly engaging appearances from old favorites (Mr. T, Arnold Schwarzenneger, Kid 'n Play) and newly minted celebrities (Jason Momoa, Post Malone, Ice Spice) alike. Here’s a look at some of the standouts and key trends.
1. Beyoncé breaks the internet — and our celebrity ranker: Beyoncé was unable to break Verizon’s 5G internet in her Super Bowl ad, but her tease for a new music drop successfully smashed our celebrity ranker. Queen Bey topped our charts by generating 2,876% more engagement than the median Super Bowl LVIII celebrity.
2. OMG! Usher drives major engagement across multiple appearances: Super Bowl LVIII was the Usher show — and not just during halftime. In addition to his scintillating performance, the R&B legend appeared in ads for BMW and Uber Eats. All three appearances landed in our top 25 most engaging celebrity activations, with Usher’s halftime show generating 539% more engagement than the median Super Bowl celebrity.
3. Viewers were moved by FanDuel’s tribune to the late, great Carl Weathers: Beloved Rocky, Happy Gilmore, and Arrested Development actor Carl Weathers sadly passed away before his planned appearance in FanDuel’s Super Bowl ad. FanDuel’s big game ad ended with a posthumous dedication to Weathers that generated 1,839% more engagement than the median Super Bowl celebrity — the third most of any star who appeared at the game.
4. Gen-Z arrives at Super Bowl LVIII: A pair of Gen Z icons cracked our top 20 by generating major engagement during this year’s Big Game. The rapper Ice Spice generated more than four times the median celebrity engagement during her comedic spot for Starry soda, ranking 14th among all celebrities. Meanwhile, Wednesday star Jenna Ortega came 19th by generating 258% more engagement than the median celebrity in her ad for Doritos.
5. Dunkin’ ad lands three celebrities in the top 25: Ben Affleck’s hip-hop dance performance for Dunkin’ was one of the most talked-about — and most effective — ads of Super Bowl LVIII. That’s why it’s no surprise that the ad featured three of the 25 celebrities that generated the most engagement during the game. Affleck’s wife, Jennifer Lopez, led the way at No. 7, followed by Affleck himself at No. 8, and Matt Damon at No. 22. Tom Brady’s appearance came just outside the top 25, clocking in at No. 31. Now where can we get some of those tracksuits?
Find EDO’s complete ranking of Super Bowl LVIII ad celebrities at EDO.com/SB-Celebs and the most engaging ads of the night at EDO.com/SuperBowl.
Curious how your brand stacked up against competitors? Download EDO’s Share of Search infographics across 10+ categories, including automotive, candy, soda, sports betting, health & beauty, and more.
How EDO ranks celebrities featured in Super Bowl LVIII ads
EDO has scored every celebrity who appeared in a Big Game ad based on incremental online activity for the celebrity immediately following the associated brand’s ad airing. Each Super Bowl celebrity is indexed to the median-performing celebrity, such that the median-performing celebrity is scored at 100. Data in this release is preliminary and subject to slight adjustments based on EDO’s final Super Bowl analysis.