USA TODAY International Edition
Latest Miley Cyrus rumor is Superlicious
America may — or may not — be ready for the Super Bowl as the Twerk Bowl.
But how could Miley Cyrus, the pop culture icon du jour, not show up in a commercial at the biggest annual celebration of pop culture?
If Madison Avenue rumors are any indication, it’s possible. Even trade journal Advertising Age is speculating that Cyrus could show up in a Super Bowl ad. The Fox broadcast audience is expected to exceed 100 million.
Besides the PR, Cyrus could make a bundle — upward of $ 1 million, estimates Noreen Jenney Laffey, president of Celebrity Endorsement Network. “She’s obviously very controversial, which is good for a Super Bowl spot.”
If $ 1 million doesn’t lure the queen of twerk ( a lewd dance move she’s now shown off in two MTV awards shows) what will? Her management team did not respond to requests for comment.
“Miley’s name automatically gets a brand media coverage,” says David Schwab of Octagon First Call, which represents celebrities. “But it can’t be a brand that already has a strong emotional connection with consumers. It has to be a brand that’s simply trying to get mass awareness.”
The logical candidate, Schwab says, is Wonderful Pistachios, which had South Korean pop star Psy in a Super Bowl spot last February. But the brand is not looking at Cyrus, says Jennifer George, spokeswoman at owner Roll Global. Its Super Bowl plans call for talent “beyond the most buzz- worthy,” she says.
GoDaddy might seem a candidate, but it’s made it clear that it’s going away from its racy ads for this Super Bowl.
Who’s left? Perhaps Mars ( Snickers) or Nestlé ( Butterfinger). Maybe Skechers, which put Kim Kardashian in a 2011 Super Bowl ad. Or Pepsi, which has done Super Bowl ads with pop stars from Michael Jackson to Britney Spears. ( Skechers and Mars say no. Pepsi and Nestlé declined to comment.)
Bob Dorfman, creative director at Baker Street Advertising, says Cyrus would be perfect in a Snickers “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” spot. In the ad, he suggests, when Cyrus starts to twerk, someone sticks a Snickers in her mouth and she turns into Taylor Swift. “Miley would be great,” he says, “but only if you could use her for a punch line.”
Schwab suggests the biggest hoot would be for Cyrus to show up as her former Disney character. “Everyone would be waiting for Miley to twerk, and out comes sweet, ol’ Hannah Montana.”