Deadpool Marketing Campaign
BAD ASS, SMART ASS, GREAT ASS
This film was released by 20th Century Fox on Valentines Day 2016, and went on to be one of the most successful movies of the year. The marketing team took an unknown superhero and made it a blockbuster hit through the use of viral videos, holiday pieces, regional marketing, social media, video footage focused on the character, and most importantly by breaking the fourth wall. The team created a ton of content around Deadpool himself without giving away any film details, making it more funny and interesting for the viewers. They emphasized the personality and based the entire marketing campaign around this humor and ability to break the TV barrier and directly talk to people. The character's ability to talk directly to the audience was exactly why the marketing materials connected so well. He made fun of the studios, the actors and almost everyone in between and became a never ending well of comedic content to watch. They kept the humor throughout the campaign with the posters all showcasing Deadpool in a crazy pose. The trailers continue to break past the fourth wall and showcase what R rated humor consumers should be ready for. The trailer below showcases the signature style of the marketing campaign.
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Results:
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Over performed initial tracking estimates of $70 million opening weekend
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Highest opening weekend of all time for an R-rated film
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Opened to over $132 million in the opening weekend
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Went on to earn over 750 million worldwide
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Generated 10,000 - 20,000 Tweets consistently
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Unusually high video engagement
They created viral videos on holidays to tease the film including ones on April fools day, Halloween and a Christmas themed 12 days of Deadpool. The team also created GIFs, new movie posters, and branded emojis scattered around the Internet to keep fans engaged on a daily basis, and kept brand awareness at a peak level, pushing it to trending level for weeks. They were able to continue the same humor throughout the campaign which is why Deadpool was called the "merc with the mouth". The main actor Ryan Reynolds was often doing a lot of the posting himself, helping to drive the social media buzz. Between the actors social media accounts and the official Deadpool accounts, fans were constantly being engaged with new content. They had funny emoji billboards and Deadpool even created a tinder account for himself showcasing the unconventional marketing approach. They took an R rating to their advantage and based the whole campaign off the character himself making people feel more connected and excited to see what adventure he goes on.