Watch Will Ferrell push electric vehicles—and bash Norway—in GM’s Super Bowl ad
Norway ranks way ahead of the U.S. when it comes to electric vehicle adoption—a fact that does not sit well with Will Ferrell in General Motors’ Super Bowl ad.
The automaker, which teased the comedic actor’s appearance in its ad earlier this week, released the full 60-second spot today. The ad from McCann Worldgroup shows a visibly upset Ferrell leaving his house to take on a mission to “crush those lugers.” He picks up Kenan Thompson and Awkwafina along the way to the Norwegian country but ends up in Sweden, while Thompson and Awkwafina find themselves in Finland.
Along the way Ferrell squeezes in some corporate talking points about GM’s proprietary Ultium batteries that he plugs as “made for all types of vehicles, so soon everyone can drive an EV.” The spot ends by touting GM’s ambition of launching “30 new EVs by 2025.”
The ad, called "No Way, Norway" is a part of GM's “Everybody In” EV awareness campaign that launched in early January.
U.S. automakers have been touting electric vehicles for years—Audi ran Super Bowl ads for EVs in 2019 and 2020—but they have yet to catch hold with large numbers of Americans. EVs account for less than 4% market share in the U.S.—but in Norway, more than half of the number of vehicles sold are electric, according to GM.
GM will run a second Super Bowl ad for an electric Cadillac model.
“The big game is the perfect venue for the incomparable Will Ferrell to encourage us all to reconsider what we know about electric vehicles, and to invite Everybody In,” GM global Chief Marketing Officer Deborah Wahl said in a statement. "We admire his passion for EVs and share Norway’s pursuit of an all-electric future.”
Ferrell added a punchline: “I’m excited to be a part of GM’s commitment to EVs. I’ve been driving an EV since the mid-80’s ... well, actually it was a regular car with 4 AA batteries taped to the carburetor, but it felt like an EV! We’re coming for you Norway!!”
The ad was directed by Jake Szymanski, who has previously collaborated with Ferrell.
The teaser campaign included a video of Ferrell pranking Norway by ordering the country 5 million pizzas with anchovies. It caught the attention of Prime Minister Erna Solberg, who tweeted this response:
