Ad Age asked its Diversity Council, made up of marketing, agency and creative leaders, to reflect on Super Bowl ads, past and present.
Super Bowl ads are once again poised to lack diverse representation and inclusivity in storytelling. This comes at a time when many brands are pulling back their DEI strategies.
In light of this, Ad Age asked its Diversity Council, made up of marketing, agency and creative leaders, to reflect on Super Bowl ads, past and present, that stood out to them as exceptional efforts of showcasing inclusion—in their casting, storylines and messages.
Below are their picks.
Google’s 60-second spot, “Seen on Pixel 6,” to promote its Real Tone feature on the Pixel 6 phone in 2022, was a standout for its stunning images of individuals with a range of skin tones. The ad, from agency Gut Miami, was set to a new track at the time from Lizzo, “If You Love Me.” The point of the ad was to showcase how the Pixel 6 is the only phone to accurately portray darker skin tones properly, through its Real Tone feature.
Christine Villanueva, executive VP of brand, strategy and growth, Walton Isaacson, called the ad a “game-changer.”
“Too often for people of color, we don’t get the chance to be seen as we are,” Villanueva said. “Stereotypes, preconceptions, and even biased technology distort how we’re seen. This ad [said] that doesn’t have to be this way. Technology can be inclusive. What makes technology valuable isn’t just its features. Authentic visibility is also deeply valued.”
Also read: Diversity in Super Bowl ads lags in 2025
Coca-Cola and agency Wieden+Kennedy paid homage to its 1972 classic “Hilltop” ad with this 2014 Super Bowl spot. The commercial spotlighted America as the ultimate melting pot, showing a range of happy Americans as “America the Beautiful” rolls in English, Spanish, Keres, Tagalog, Hindi, Senegalese French and Hebrew.
Walton Isaacson’s Villanueva called the spot “a masterclass in inclusive storytelling.”
“Using the universal language of music, it features ‘America the Beautiful’ sung in multiple languages to reflect the rich diversity of voices that shape our nation,” Villanueva said. “And it does this with a powerful reminder that inclusion isn’t just about representation, it about belonging, which we know is an essential driver of consumer connection and brand affinity.”
Latraviette Smith-Wilson, executive VP, chief marketing and equity officer and executive board member, Horizon Media, called the ad “a powerful declaration of what America truly represents—diversity, unity and the beauty of our shared human experience.”
“Looking back on when this first aired and where we are now, it feels even more poignant in a time when divisions increasingly dominate the discourse, and when diversity, equity and inclusion have been deliberately politicized and weaponized,” she said. “With rising xenophobia, anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and cultural fractures, this ad is even more relevant today than when it first aired. It reminds us that unity does not require uniformity, and that our nation is at its most beautiful—and most patriotic—when it embraces the full spectrum of American identities.”
The star-studded e.l.f. Beauty commercial last year was commended for its ability to have fun and be inclusive. “Judge Judy” Sheindlin starred alongside a female-dominant lineup of celebrities, as well as LGBTQ+ icons, including singer Meghan Trainor, Heidi N Closet from “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “Suits’” Gina Torres and Sarah Rafferty.
“It’s fun, inclusive, and for everyone,” Walton Isaacson's Villanueva said. “It shows real people of all skin tones, identities and styles embracing bold, playful, and affordable beauty. It’s celebrating self-expression in all forms. The spot makes clear that high-quality makeup isn’t just for a select few, it’s for everyone, no matter your age, gender, or background. We all belong. We are all beautiful.”
Google had one of the most inclusive Super Bowl commercials last year. Its 60-second ad for its Pixel 8 phone was partly filmed with a camera obscured by petroleum jelly, a choice blind director Adam Morse made to transport people into the point of view of a blind character, Ad Age earlier reported. The tech giant worked with agency Gut Miami and the commercial, “Javier In Frame,” tells the story of a blind man who falls in love and starts a family.
“By collaborating with a director who is blind and by centering accessibility, the ad moves beyond tokenism or simple casting into authentic, experience-driven representation,” Horizon Media's Smith-Wilson said.
She said the ad “thoughtfully portrays the experience of a visually impaired man,” helped by Google’s AI-driven accessibility features, “but it doesn’t end there.”
“The choice of the featured couple further reflects the richness of modern relationships, showcasing real-world diversity in a way that feels organic, deeply human and centered on our shared experiences,” Smith-Wilson said. “This ad underscores that inclusion is about more than optics or taglines—it’s about setting a new standard for advertising that prioritizes authenticity, meaningful representation, impact and a critical understanding of nuance.”
Keely Cat-Wells, entrepreneur and disability rights activist, and Storm Smith, an independent creative director and consultant and disability rights activist, also praised “Javier In Frame” for doing “a great job for disability representation.”
“By authentically portraying Javier’s experience as a blind photographer, the campaign shatters preconceived notions of ability, proving that creativity knows no limits when accessibility is prioritized,” Smith said. “More than just representation, it immerses the audience in Javier’s world, allowing them to feel his perspective and experience his artistry through his own lens. This campaign is a bold reminder that innovation thrives when it embraces diversity, reinforcing that technology isn’t just about function—it’s about unlocking human potential.”
Sheereen Miller-Russell, executive VP of ad sales and client partnerships, Warner Bros. Discovery, called out Dove’s Super Bowl spot from last year for its empowering message supporting women and girls in sports.
The spot from WPP creative agency Ogilvy showed girls across various sports taking spills, but argued that skill level was not what drives most teen girls out of the game, low body confidence does. The Dove ad was also directed by Lucy Bridger, one of the only three female directors confirmed in the 2024 Big Game.
Warner Bros. Discovery's Miller-Russell also praised Google’s 2020 Super Bowl spot, “Loretta,” which portrayed an elderly man who is coping following the loss of his wife. In that tearjerker ad, he asked Google, “How to not forget.”
At the time, Lorraine Twohill, chief marketing officer at Google, said the ad aimed to reflect how the tech giant's products can “help people in their daily lives, in both big and small ways ... and sometimes it’s using the Google Assistant to remember meaningful details.” The spot was created in-house.
Miller-Russell praised Doritos’ in-game ad from last year as a standout example of how to portray Hispanic culture well.
The Doritos spot featured a high-speed chase by Hispanic actor Jenna Ortega’s abuelas, “Dina and Mita,” who are after the bag of Doritos Dinamitas that Hispanic actor Danny Ramirez picked up first in the grocery store.
The spot was praised last year by Isaac Mizrahi, president and CEO of multicultural ad agency Alma, for making the abuelas the stars.
Audi used its Super Bowl commercial in 2017 to promote gender pay equality through a story about a father pondering how society will value his young daugther's worth as he watches her compete in a downhill cart race. The 60-second spot was created by agency Venables Bell & Partners and ended on a positive note, with the father hopeful that his daughter will be treated fairly and a pledge from Audi commiting to uphold equal pay.
Kin Co-Founder Kwame Taylor-Hayford called the ad a “beautifully crafted story that explores pay equity through a multigenerational lens.”
It made “the issue relatable for many (fathers especially),” even though it missed “on representing different ethnicities and ages,” he said.
Procter & Gamble’s Olay rocketed Canadian YouTube creator Lilly Singh and actor Busy Philipps, alongside retired NASA astronaut Nicole Stott, into space in 2020. The Super Bowl ad, created by agency Badger & Winters, featured an all-female cast—Taraji P. Henson, who was part of a space mission in the film Hidden Figures, was Olay’s “mission controller,” and Katie Couric provided news coverage.
The spot was quite literally meant to give more space to women. “We recognize that many industries have yet to reach gender parity, which is why we’re using our Super Bowl ad to feature fearless women who have been trailblazers in their own industries as a way to inspire people everywhere to get involved," Eric Rose, who was Olay's associate brand director at the time but left the company in 2022, had said.
Ahmad Islam, managing partner and CEO of Ten35, said the ad “promoted gender inclusion in STEM fields but also included Black women from a diversity perspective with celebrities like Taraji P. Henson and it encouraged women to pursue careers in science and technology.”
