Chris Hemsworth pitches Bulldogs’ fairytale victory as a Hollywood movie in new AFL promo

The AFL has revived the line of “I’d Like to See that” first run in 1994 and brought back to life earlier this year with the launch of Women’s AFL in massive new campaign starring Chris Hemsworth.

Hemsworth pitches a blockbuster movie to Hollywood moguls in the 2017 AFL campaign.

The decision to go with the Australian actor (who also stars in campaigns for Foxtel) came after research by the league which suggested he was the top ranking Australian celebrity with AFL fans, with wide appeal to women and families.

Hemsworth’s credibility as the face of the game for 2017 was further enhanced by his passion for the Bulldogs, who snatched their first AFL premiership in last year’s Grand Final.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PX7eU-fXDE

The new work is the start of a multi-year-campaign which will aggregates the AFL’s seasonal campaigns under a constant creative strategy which has been developed with Cummins & Partners.

Tapping into Hemsworth’s Hollywood background and the fairytale nature of the Bulldogs win, the ad opens with the actor pitching a movie to a room of sceptical Hollywood moguls.

As he unveils the title, AFL: The Movie, he starts to tell the tale of a team that has not won a premiership in 62 years.

“The Bont” smashes up the room in the new AFL ad.

Asking if the fairytale can be repeated he introduces Bulldogs player Marcus “the Bont” Bontemelli, who proceeds to barrel his way around the room with the ball before smashing through a window.

“This is a modern day epic,” Hemsworth says, “This is footy”.

AFL head of marketing Julian Dunne said the campaign was a chance to ignite the passion of the sport in existing fans and bring new ones on board.

“The campaign is a celebration of what makes the game unique and spectacular – the live experience, the incredible skills of the players and the passion of the fans,” Dunne said.

“The Western Bulldogs premiership win is one of the great sporting stories, and with Chris being such a huge Bulldogs fan, he was a natural fit.  He was really passionate about the campaign and involved through the whole process, including the idea and the script. He was brilliant to work with and we were thrilled that he wanted to be involved.”

The AFL will run the campaign across Seven, Foxtel and on social media, with Ten different ads to be rolled out of the course of the season.

Ads will also be tailored to local markets featuring local teams with a heavy focus on New South Wales and Queensland, as well as a focus on families, kids and women.

The AFL will also extend the reach of the campaign through contra deals and will use outdoor to highlight stars of the game.