The Squid Game 5 Star has been found! - Ad Analysis
AI Editor notes
Straight from the gut!!
“This is just plain smart. Piggybacking on the 'Squid Game' phenomenon is the biggest cultural shortcut you can take right now. The idea to flip the show's entire premise on its head to serve the brand's 'Do Nothing' mantra is the kind of simple, clever reversal that wins awards. It's witty, self-aware, and perfectly targeted at an audience that appreciates brands that don't take themselves too seriously.”
Quick Summary
This campaign is a masterclass in cultural hijacking. By inserting its long-standing 'Do Nothing' philosophy directly into the high-stakes, high-effort universe of Netflix's 'Squid Game', Cadbury 5 Star created a perfectly contradictory and humorous piece of advertising that reinforces its core brand message in the most memorable way possible.
Executive Summary
Cadbury 5 Star's collaboration with Netflix for 'Squid Game 2' is a sharp, tactical execution that demonstrates the power of a well-established brand platform. For years, Ogilvy has built 5 Star's identity around the counter-cultural idea of 'doing nothing' in a world obsessed with hustle. [3] This campaign takes that ethos and pressure-tests it against the ultimate symbol of high-stakes effort: 'Squid Game'.
The Core Insight here is the simple human truth that sometimes, the smartest move is no move at all. In an age of FOMO (fear of missing out), 5 Star champions JOMO (the joy of missing out). The campaign taps into the exhaustion people feel from constantly having to participate and compete, offering the 5 Star bar as a symbol of blissful inaction.
The execution follows a classic Setup-Turn-Payoff structure. The Setup is a meticulous, high-fidelity parody of 'Squid Game'. From the production design to the desperate contestants and menacing guards, the ad perfectly mimics the show's intense atmosphere. It establishes a high-stakes hunt for a 'special' 5 Star bar, drawing the viewer into the familiar, anxiety-ridden world of the game. The Turn happens when the narrator reveals the entire contest was a red herring. After a brief, humorous exchange with a guard who admits they couldn't get 'legal permission' to kill contestants, the focus shifts to the actual winner. The Payoff is the reveal: the winning symbols were on every 5 Star bar all along, and the prize went to someone who simply noticed it at home. This punchline—'one legend managed to beat millions... by doing... nothing'—brilliantly lands the brand's core message. The final shot of the exasperated contestants realizing their frantic effort was pointless provides a powerful, comedic reinforcement of the brand philosophy. [6]
The debrief for the marketing team is clear: a strong, consistent brand platform is a creative asset that can be deployed to intercept and reframe culture. Instead of a generic sponsorship, 5 Star integrated its DNA into the partnership, making the 'Squid Game' phenomenon work for the brand, not the other way around. It proves that relevance doesn't always mean conforming to trends, but rather, having a point of view on them.
Theme Keywords
Brand Position
The official chocolate for opting out and embracing the joy of doing nothing.
Brand Archetype
The Jester
Creative Game Plan
Juxtapose the world's most intense competition with the simple joy of doing nothing to prove our brand's core philosophy.
Diagnosis: Issues & Solutions
Primary Issue: Strategic Sense
The Problem:
The co-branding, while powerful, slightly dilutes the focus. The end card gives almost equal weight to Netflix and 5 Star, which could leave some viewers remembering the 'Squid Game' part more than the chocolate part.
The Solution:
Strengthen the brand's role as the hero. A final shot could have shown the winner casually eating the 5 Star while watching the chaos on TV, more explicitly connecting the chocolate to the feeling of 'winning by not playing'.
Secondary Issue: Clarity of "What's Next?"
The Problem:
The campaign was built around a contest that is now over, which can date the creative. The ad explains the result of a past event, making the immediate call to action for a new viewer slightly passive.
The Solution:
For the evergreen version of the ad, the focus could shift from the contest itself to the universal insight. The framing could be less of a 'recap' and more of a timeless parable about the folly of hustle culture.
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