The most notorious marketers in movies

Marketing has a bit of a love-hate relationship with Hollywood. When your role revolves around influencing people’s choices for commercial gain it’s easy to paint you as the villain – and plenty of films do. However, creative-minded marketers with bold ideas also provide some of the most charismatic and memorable characters in movies, with brand ideas that are often far ahead of their time. Here’s our team’s selection of the most notorious marketing characters from movies – and how we think their strategies would stack up today:

Larry Vaughn
Jaws (1975)

His brand and product are the seaside resort of Amity Island, his clients are the townspeople, his objective is the summer marketing dollars of holidaymakers – and he’s not going to let a large, man-eating shark get in the way. Mayor Vaughn is the closest thing to a human villain in Jaws, but deep down he’s a seductively sympathetic one: charismatic, quick talking, the face of the town but also the main thing standing between its people and commercial disaster.

As a marketer, he knows his target audience and the competition, and he chooses to protect his brand image through the carefully controlled release of information, always spun to suit his story. His best line, “we caught and killed a large predator that supposedly injured some bathers”, comes when at least two human victims have been completely devoured – and the shark is still out there.

How would the strategy stack up today?
Disastrously. In the age of mobile video and social media, the idea of hiding the fact that there’s a killer shark cruising around your beaches would be insane. Reacting fast – and being transparent about it – would be Larry’s only chance of success.

Jonathan Switcher
Mannequin (1987)

This would-be artist starts off as a department store stock boy and rises to head of merchandising thanks to a passion for storytelling through his window displays. It helps that he’s actually in love with the spirit of an Ancient Egyptian princess embodied in the Mannequin he’s made.

How would the strategy stack up today?
Brilliantly. Window displays remain one of the most important touchpoints for department stores – and Jonathan’s passionate, artistic approach is perfect for capturing attention and footfall. In today’s media environment, he’d probably be taking an innovative approach to eCommerce platforms as well.

Josh Baskin
Big (1988)

The best source of new product ideas that MacMillan Toys has ever had does have a bit of an unfair advantage – he’s actually a 12-year-old boy trapped in an adult’s body. Josh has a rapid rise to success based on his unnerving instinct for what his target audience really wants. However, it all starts to fall apart when he has to figure out how to turn inspiring ideas into profitable products.

How would the strategy stack up today?
It would be bold – but it might just work. The struggle to balance creative ideals with commercial opportunity is one that any marketer can sympathise with – and it’s still particularly relevant to the toy category. Watch any TV ad break during a children’s show and you’ll see how well attuned marketers are to what gets kids excited; order any of the products and you’ll usually see how reality falls short of their expectations. Josh would argue for a very different business model. He might well earn a brand standout and a more loyal customer base by impressing parents with genuine quality.

Emory Leeson
Crazy People (1990)

“Volvo – they’re boxy but they’re good” is the most famous brand proposition that this advertising executive comes up with following his nervous breakdown – and that’s largely because it’s the only politely repeatable one. His ideas for Jaguar, and the tourist boards of Greece and The Bahamas… well, I’d get nervous repeating them here. Confined to a psychiatric hospital, Emory turns it into the ultimate creative hothouse, with marketing ideas that are shocking, sometimes incomprehensible, but always hilarious – and honest.

How would the strategy stack up today?
Multiple Cannes Lions winner. I’ve got a theory this film helped to invent branding as we know it today. It celebrated the value of shocking authenticity long before it became a buzzword at marketing festivals. As one review said at the time, “the film is less a diatribe against advertising than an unintended celebration of it”.

John Hammond
Jurassic Park (1993)

I’ll admit, putting this billionaire philanthropist and inventor of cloned dinosaurs into the marketing department feels like a bit of a demotion. At heart, though, Hammond is a marketer. He’s got an idea that can change the world and inspire the next generation – it’s a pity he’s let down by some disastrous talent management issues. Relying on Newman from Seinfeld to keep the park running – and protect visitors from vicious prehistoric predators? It was always likely to go wrong…

How would the strategy stack up today?
“Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.” It’s the most famous line from the film – and still a great warning about the need to test whether innovation actually fits what the market wants – not to mention what’s safe. Perhaps Hammond should have done just a bit more testing before he started creating T. Rex’s and Velociraptors – and some more thorough IT safeguards would probably have helped too.

Virginia Venit
Happy Gilmore (1996)

Sadly, Virgina is the only woman to make our list – which is itself a bit of a sad indictment of how Hollywood sees the marketing profession. On the upside, she’s arguably the most innovative and successful of our marketers, reinvigorating an entire sport and industry through her eye for expanding its market. Many would have seen a former hockey player turned golfer with serious anger management issues as something of a liability; Virginia recognises our hero as the ultimate rebranding opportunity.

How would the strategy stack up today?
Golf participation is in fairly serious decline, with clubs closing all over the world. Capturing the interest of a new generation and infusing the sport with anarchy and attitude is a bold blueprint – but it might just work. Now, we just need a real-life Adam Sandler to help make it happen…

Christof
The Truman Show (1998)

As the creator of the original Reality TV show (anticipating Big Brother and everything since), Christof is a content genius – albeit one with a serious God complex. When it comes to controlling the unwitting star of his show, he also proves himself to be a master of psychological influence: implanting memories of drowning to create Truman’s fear of water, consistently presenting the idea of travel as terrifying, and reacting decisively to anything that threatens his core narrative.

How would the strategy stack up today?
If anyone could reinvent the increasingly blah world of Reality TV, it’s Christof. A real-life Truman Show would be diabolical genius, but could anyone work with a creative so clearly insane as this one? If nothing else, his skill at neuroscience-based nudging would make him a bestselling author to compete with Daniel Kahneman and Cass Sunstein.

The Once-ler
The Lorax (2012)

“Everybody needs a thneed” – and let’s face it, any marketer who can turn an anatomically unsuitable knitted garment into an indispensable multi-purpose tool is worth his or her weight in gold. The Once-ler is able to achieve all of this through a single catchy tune. However, his shocking blind spot when it comes to sustainability quickly brings both his business and his world to disaster. Some more collaborative decision-making (listening to those who speak for the trees, for example) would surely have helped.

How would the strategy stack up today?
Hopefully, in these days of mainstreamed sustainability, it wouldn’t make it out of the boardroom. “I’m figuring on biggering” should never really cut it as a growth strategy. Rather than chasing unsustainable volume, our hero needed to work out the environmental cost of his products, price them appropriately, and invest the money in planting more Truffula trees.

Nick Naylor
Thank You for Smoking (2006)

As the amoral chief spokesman for Big Tobacco, Nick is both hero and villain of this cult film. He starts off in despicable denial mode, funding phony research to dispute the link between smoking and cancer – and going so far as to pay off the former Marlboro Man (now dying of the disease) to prevent him campaigning against cigarettes. But Nick’s strategy evolves in compelling ways. By the end of the film he admits the dangers of smoking – but argues for the importance of consumer choice and the need for people to take responsibility for their actions and the consequences. Still far from a pillar of moral marketing – but throwing up interesting questions about where marketers’ responsibilities end.

How would the strategy stack up today?
Sorry Nick – it wouldn’t. A decade ago, when this shrewd and witty movie was released, building irresponsible brands behind the mantra of consumer choice might just have worked. Today, it’s a non-starter. Marketers and their audiences alike know the psychological impact of creating an environment that legitimises destructive behaviour. The current debates around fast food and gambling ads in the UK are a case in point. We expect purposeful brands to actively seek better outcomes for their customers rather than just shifting the blame. It makes a great end to the movie – but on this issue, it feels like marketing has moved on.