By Stefanie Collins, editor b&c
Wild Turkey has released the first of its television commercials directed by and starring newly appointed creative director and Academy Award-winning actor Matthew McConaughey.
The commercial, incidently McConaughey’s directorial debut, is part of the Bourbon brand’s new global marketing campaign. Titled “It’ll Find You”, the series was created in partnership with J. Walter Thompson New York, and aims to reintroduce the world to Wild Turkey.
The television spot, narrated by McConaughey over music from New Orleans’ The Hot 8 Brass Band which he personally selected, follows the journey of a woman and her glass of Wild Turkey Bourbon through different locations and times. The scene opens with a pour atop a player piano in a dimly lit speakeasy. From there, the audience is taken through a vibrant jazz club, and ultimately to an intimate campfire high atop a hill. It ends with the glass of Wild Turkey Bourbon finding its way to another piano – this one played by McConaughey.
Regarding the message of the TV spot, McConaughey says: “So many times people choose their drinks to fit in and join the crowd. Wild Turkey is about something different. The tagline ‘It’ll Find You’ is at the heart of what Wild Turkey is all about. If you are being yourself, unapologetically doing things your own way, then you are at home wherever you are, and Wild Turkey, well, it’ll find you.”
The television spot will begin running in the U.S. in September, and is part of a global broadcast, print, and digital campaign to support Wild Turkey.
Bob Kunze-Concewitz, CEO at Gruppo Campari, owner of Wild Turkey, says that McConaughey’s vision suits the brand.
“Matthew McConaughey’s unflinching creative style and voice are the perfect fit for a brand like Wild Turkey, which has been doing things its own way for decades,” he says. “With this new television campaign, he has tapped into what so many Wild Turkey fans understand about the brand and themselves – take pride in the choices you make, even if they are different, because they make you who you are.”
That sentiment is echoed by Brent Choi, chief creative officer, J. Walter Thompson New York.
“Matthew perfectly embodied, both on screen and behind the camera, the uncompromising spirit of the brand,” he says. “His unique background brought us refreshing insight and direction that led to a wonderful creative collaboration.”