Game of Thrones Hijacks Bud Light's Super Bowl Ad in Epic Spot 'Joust'

During the second quarter of the Super Bowl, HBO and Bud Light delivered a quintessential Game of Thrones twist ending to the latest entry in Bud Light’s series of 'Dilly Dilly' commercials.

What starts as a classic Bud Light Super Bowl commercial featuring the King and Bud Knight descends into chaos when the menacing Game of Thrones character the Mountain (Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson) makes a surprise appearance, defeating the defender of the 'Dilly Dilly' kingdom in a jousting contest.

Building on the latest chapter of the medieval 'Dilly Dilly' series, Bud Light’s agency, Wieden+Kennedy, collaborated with HBO and Droga5 on the 60-second spot, 'Joust'. Production on the ad reunited more than 25 people from the Game of Thrones crew under the direction of David Nutter, the man who orchestrated the infamous 'The Red Wedding' episode among others, and the collaboration of showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. The first half of the spot was under the direction of Bud Light’s Spencer Riviera, who previously directed creative within the Bud Light medieval universe.

To kick off the next phase of its #ForTheThrone campaign, which asks fans, celebs and brands what they would do #ForTheThrone in celebration of the series’ final season (debuting April 14th), HBO was looking for a stage and brand partner that could stand up to the powerhouse the show has become. Bud Light, known for delivering iconic Super Bowl commercials, was the top choice and jumped on board immediately.

The reveal of the Super Bowl commercial was intentionally left to in-game to maximise the surprise for fans and viewers alike. Simultaneously an extended version was revealed online, with additional Easter eggs for fans of the show to enjoy.

Full Credits

Agency for HBO: Droga5 NY

Creative Chairman: David Droga

Chief Creative Officer: Neil Heymann 

Group Creative Director: Andrew Fergusson 

Creative Director: Dustin Tomes

Creative Director: Jono Paull

Associate Creative Director: Adrian Chan

Associate Creative Director: Lauren Ferreira 

Art Director: Tobias Lindborg

Copywriter: Felix Karlsson

Chief Creation Officer: Sally-Ann Dale

Director of Film Production: Jesse Brihn

Senior Producer: Liliana Vega

Head of Business Affairs: Jocelyn Howard

Celebrity Talent Relations, Associate Director: Lindsey McElroy 

Business Affairs Manager: Abigail Press

Chief Strategy Officer: Jonny Bauer

Group Strategy Director: Will Davie

Group Communications Strategy Director: Samantha Deevy

Communications Strategy Director: Elsa Stahura 

Group Data Strategy Director: Anthony Khaykin 

Senior Data Strategist: Tradd Salvo

Chief Communications Officer: Marianne Stefanowicz 

Managing Director: Dan Gonda 

Group Account Director: Lauren LaValle 

Account Director: Ola Abayomi

Account Manager: Ashley Diddell

Project Manager: Carolyn Brafman

Legal: Sarah Fox 

Agency for Bud Light: W+K

Co-President/CCO: Colleen DeCourcy

Executive Creative Director: Karl Lieberman

Creative Director: Brandon Henderson

Creative Director: John Parker

Art Director: Kevin Kaminishi

Copywriter: Jessica Ghersi

Head of Content Production: Nick Setounski

Executive Producer: Temma Shoaf

Producer: Alexey Novikov

Director of Business Affairs: Patrick O’Donoghue

Senior Business Affairs Manager: Justine Lowe

Business Affairs Coordinator: Andrea Sierra

Traffic Director: Sonia Bisono

Traffic Manager: Tina Wyatt

Project Manager: Vimal Patel

Group Account Director: Brandon Pracht

Account Director: Price Manford

Management Supervisor: Alex Scaros

Account Supervisor: Lauren Wilson

Production Company: O Positive

Director: David Nutter

Director: Spencer Riviera

DP: Jonathan Freeman

Executive Producer: Ralph Laucella

Executive Producer: Ken Licata

Editorial Company: Arcade

Editor: Paul Martinez

Editor: Katie Weiland

Assistant Editor: Thomas Bergerstock

Executive Producer: Sila Soyer

Producer: Fanny Cruz

VFX Company: The Mill

Shoot Supervisor: Tony Robins

2D Lead: John McIntosh

2D Artist: Yoon-Sun Bae, Heather Kennedy, Vi Nguyen, Matthew DeFranco, Ant Walsham, Neeraj Rajput, Samarendra Lenka Inturi Chandra Sekharm, Bharath Ediga, Prasanna Bhat, Madhana Gopala, Venkatesh Srinvivasan, Badarinath Chinimilli, Ramanjaneyulu Thota Nehal Desai

3D Lead: Tom Bardwell

3D Artists: Lauren Shields, Tim Kim,Hassan Taimur, James Mulholland, Todd Akita, Paul Liaw, Sandor Toledo,  Ayush Bajoria, Leela Shanker, Spandana Battula, Raj Kumar

Matte Painting: Sue Jang

Executive Producer: Andrew Sommerville

Producer: Clariellen Wallin

Producer: Michael Brown, Payal Thakkar

Coordinator: Christina Chung

VFX Company: Pixomondo

VFX Supervisor: Derek Spears

VFX Producer: Chelsea Miller

VFX Coordinator: Andrew Zeko

VFX Artists: Daniel Knight, Fei Chen, Shawn Sahara

VFX Editor: William Appleby

Sound Design: Jafbox Sound

Sound Designer: Joseph Fraioli

Sound Design: Eargasm Inc.

Sound Designer: Paula Greenfield

Music: Walker Music

Executive Producer: Sara Matarazzo

Executive Producer: Stephanie Pigott

Music Coordinator: Danielle Soury

Music

Music Editor: David Klotz

Mix: Sound Lounge

Mixer: Tom Jucarone

Co-Sound Engineer: Rob Difondi

Producer: Lauren Mullen

Telecine: Company 3

Colourist: Tim Masick

Producer: Kevin Breheny