The Backstreet Boys made a surprise appearance at T-Mobile’s Times Square location in late January, shocking real customers with a goofy, over-the-top reimagination of their 1999 hit “I Want It That Way” for the wireless carrier’s Super Bowl 60 appearance. The pop stars replaced the song’s lyrics with praise of T-Mobile’s services.
“Backstreet’s back to make it clear that at T-Mobile it’s better here,” Howie Dorough croons.
The performance is speckled with shenanigans, from an airborne cell phone and overpowering wind to comedian Druski shedding tears of joy-and a late cameo from rapper-rocker Machine Gun Kelly, or MGK, who shows up a little too late to the party.
The 60-second spot was created by Panay Films, the entertainment-studio-slash-commercial-creative-agency led by Wedding Crashers producer Andrew Panay.
Though the Backstreet Boys injected the game with a healthy dose of nostalgia, creative leaders in the ad industry largely felt that the campaign fell flat.
Jason Harris, CEO, Mekanism
“The “I Want It That Way” concept is entertaining enough, and thankfully, the brand avoided the predictable Scrubs reunion route,” said Jason Harris, CEO of creative agency Mekanism, nodding to the brand’s previous Super Bowl work with Scrubs’ stars Zach Braff and Donald Faison.
“The standout moment comes at the end, with Machine Gun Kelly’s surprise appearance,” Harris said, “which receives a notably lukewarm reception, which is a clever, self-aware bit that adds some humor to an otherwise standard celebrity overstuffed Super Bowl commercial.”
Other creatives agreed that the flashy, celebrity-centric approach feels expected-and that T-Mobile’s campaign doesn’t go much further to deliver value to audiences.
David Angelo, chairman and founder, David & Goliath
“Super Bowl Sunday isn’t just about showing up. It’s about showing up with something people will actually remember,” said David Angelo, chairman and founder of creative agency David & Goliath. “You’re competing with the biggest brands, the biggest celebrities, and the biggest cultural moments of the year. So yes-Backstreet Boys fans probably loved seeing their favorite band. And if attention was the goal, T-Mobile succeeded. But attention alone doesn’t cut it. Here, the brand message gets overshadowed by the talent spectacle. A commercial about an experience isn’t the same as creating one in an authentic way. It feels hollow and manufactured.”
Karen Costello, creative chair, Dentsu
While the Backstreet Boys-joined Druski, MGK, and actor-influencer Pierson Fodé-are clearly having some fun onscreen, the approach doesn’t ultimately pay off, according to Deutsch’s creative chair Karen Costello. The spot reads “like more of the same for T-Mobile and the Super Bowl,” she said.
Watch T-Mobile’s Super Bowl 60 ad below.
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