LOS ANGELES – As Oscar season has come around once again, Hollywood’s brightest gathered together at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles for the 89th Academy Awards. The glitzy evening also served as the perfect occasion for the debut of a new ad campaign by J. Walter Thompson for Rolex called “Celebrating cinema.”
The ad compiles several scenes from past films that coincidentally feature the iconic brand that is Rolex. From Peter Sellers’ Inspector Clouseau of The Pink Panther, other actors such as Paul Newman, Faye Dunaway, Harrison Ford, Dustin Hoffman, Dennis Hopper, Jim Carrey, Marlon Brando, Jacqueline Bisset, Nick Nolte, Terrence Howard, Gabriel Byrne, Owen Wilson, David Oyelowo, Guy Pearce, and Charles Bronson are shown wearing a Rolex.
By pure accident, one of the actors presented in the 60-second ad is Bill Paxton in his role as treasure hunter Brock Lovett in the 1997 blockbuster Titanic. Paxton had passed away mere hours before the Oscars ceremony began due to complications from a surgery, rendering his appearance in the ad even more poignant.
“Rolex supports inspiring individuals and organizations who achieve great heights in both the sporting world and the arts, and the Academy exemplifies this pursuit of defying the odds to reach unimaginable goals. The Academy Awards and Rolex recognize and uphold excellence,” says Arnaud Boetsch, Rolex Director of Communication & Image.
This was the second consecutive year that Rolex served as exclusive sponsor of the Oscars Greenroom. The company also supports young filmmakers through its philanthropic program, the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative.
