New Can
Pepsi1992
New Can is a 1992 60-second television commercial for Pepsi, created by BBDO, New York.
The line
Is that a great new Pepsi can or what?
Why it works
A red Lamborghini pulls into a dusty roadside café, Cindy Crawford steps out in a white tank top and cut-offs, and two small boys stare as she buys a Pepsi and drinks it to Doris Troy's “Just One Look.” Then the twist: “Is that a great new Pepsi can or what?” The boys were admiring the packaging all along. Made by BBDO New York and directed by Joe Pytka, it debuted during Super Bowl XXVI on January 26, 1992, to unveil Pepsi's redesigned cans. It is studied as one of advertising's great misdirects: it borrows the most famous supermodel of the moment, then hands the starring role back to the product. Pytka recalls that Crawford was cast just before the shoot, after the creative director spotted her on a drugstore calendar, and that she nailed it in two takes. It finished second in USA Today's 1992 Ad Meter, and Pepsi brought her back to remake it for Super Bowl LII in 2018, alongside her son Presley Gerber.
Techniques
- Humour A last-second twist reveals the two staring boys were admiring the new can, not the supermodel, turning the set-up into a punchline.
- Testimonial and endorsement The most famous supermodel of the moment drinks a Pepsi, lending her star power before the spot hands the spotlight back to the packaging.
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