The majority of directors behind the 2024 Big Game commercials are white men and there is a lack of authentic, diverse storytelling, according to Ad Age’s early analysis

Only a handful of Super Bowl 2024 advertisers fully embraced diversity and inclusion in their marketing.

Super Bowl advertisers are once again lacking in bringing authentic, diverse storytelling to the big stage, despite continuing to make diversity, equity and inclusion commitments.

For the third consecutive year, Ad Age asked every Super Bowl advertiser with plans to air national, in-game commercials about how they prioritized diversity and inclusion in the creation and production of their ads. This includes how they approached casting, diversity within the agencies they worked with and the makeup of those working on the production. Ad Age will continue to track this data as more advertisers reveal their in-game ads for Super Bowl LVIII.

Some brands had very clear action steps and outlined ways they implemented these practices in the conceptual and production phases of their ads, but many, once again, declined to provide specific details on the makeup of their cast and those who worked on their ads.

Others—including Uber Eats, Volkswagen, E-Trade, State Farm and Unilever (for its brand Dove, which has an in-game ad)—provided no specific details or instead offered generic DE&I mission statements that essentially said they support the cause without disclosing any specific efforts. BetMGM noted that 50% of its production crew identified as a person of color, but declined to answer any additional questions. Anheuser-Busch InBev (which has ads for Bud Light, Budweiser and Michelob Ultra) and Reese’s did not respond to survey questions, only sending a list of credits for who worked on each of its spots.

One of the biggest issues in attempting to measure diversity and track progress both in front of and behind the camera continues to involve guidelines that prevent requiring crew members or cast to disclose information about how they identify. Multiple brands, including FanDuel and Oreo, cited these guidelines as hurdles to providing detailed data.
“As one might have predicted, what we’ve seen from the majority of Super Bowl spots that have been released or teased for 2024 is a rinse and repeat of a tired combination,” said Ben Hennes, chief creative officer and co-owner of agency Happylucky. “Cast majority white, majority male celebrities and place them in predominantly white, western storylines.”

Diversifying casting
Of the 71 celebrities Ad Age confirmed will appear in Super Bowl commercials, 23 identify as female, while 48 identify as male; 16 are Black, four are Hispanic, two are Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) and five are two or more races. This analysis does not include those who appear in the ad who are not celebrities.

The majority of celebrities—44 as of press time—starring in this year’s Big Game commercials are white.

In terms of Black representation, this year’s Super Bowl will feature A-listers including Mr. T, who stars in Skechers’ ad promoting its Hands Free Slip-Ins shoes; comedian Eric Andre, who stars in Drumstick’s first Super Bowl spot; Minnesota Vikings’ Justin Jefferson, the New Orleans Saints’ Cameron Jordan and New York Giants’ Saquon Barkley, who appear in the National Football League’s ad; rapper LL Cool J driving the “Chill Train” in Coors Light’s spot; Abbott Elementary’s Quinta Brunson in TurboTax’s commercial; and R&B icon and halftime performer Usher making cameos in commercials for brands including BMW and Uber Eats.
The NFL’s “Born to Play” commercial also features a cast largely from West Africa. “It was important to us to make sure the casted roles were filled with actors from the region. Four hundred of the cast members were Ghanaian, nine were Nigerian, one was South African. Two members of the cast were female,” said Marissa Solis, NFL senior VP of global brand and consumer marketing.
Solis said for the NFL’s “Tackle Bullying” and “Mental Game” commercials, “80% of on-camera principals” are people of color and “69% of background talent” are people of color.

M&M’s reported 81% of its on-camera principals are representative of diverse groups. The candy maker’s spot includes NFL players Dan Marino, Bruce Smith and Terrell Owens, and actress Scarlett Johansson.

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