Caesars Sportsbook, the NFL’s exclusive casino partners, just released a 30-second commercial for the upcoming Super Bowl that features a play on Roman times with a Caesar and Cleo dinner theme. In the clip, which can be seen above, comedian JB Smoove plays Julius Caesar while actress Halle Berry plays his lover, Cleopatra, and they are sitting at a table for dinner with sports legends Eli Manning and Peyton Manning as well as their family members Archie and Cooper Manning. It doesn’t take long before their exchanges of pleasantries become quite amusing.
Cleo goes on to let the Manning brothers know she loves the work they’ve done as an alternate “Manningcast” audio track on Monday Night Football before Archie talks about loving the rebranding of New Orleans’ stadium as the Caesars Superdome. Peyton then tries to make a joke, but Smoove aka Caesar, reminds him who the comedian there is.
The new commercial, which is set to air during the Super Bowl’s second quarter, was directed by Stacy Hall, who has created ads for big companies like Sprint, Uber Eats and Honda, and was appropriately filmed at Caesars Palace hotel. It was also created by agency Ten6 and production company Imperial Woodpecker and included work from co-writer, executive creative director and advertising industry veteran Jeff Kling. The sportsbook was launched in Aug. and it’s released several ads in the past, with some featuring all six of the same stars from their latest one.
When the memorable ad was released, Sharon Otterman, chief marketing officer of Caesars Digital, released a statement about why the commercial was done. “We’re an entertainment company first and foremost, but we are also storytellers and this commercial gives us the unique opportunity to highlight family, fun and football on the world’s biggest stage,” it read.
The Caesars Sportsbook’s Super Bowl ad is part of a weekend-long campaign that features two more spots. They feature Halle in an ad that supports the nonprofit, Best Friends Animal Society, and the Mannings in an ad about responsible gaming.