Weekly Best in Movie Marketing: ‘Severence’ and ‘Avengers: Doomsday’
Hello! Welcome to the fifth blog post in my series, ‘Weekly Best in Movie Marketing‘. In this series, I highlight my favourite movie marketing initiatives from the week in my book. I also explain why they stand out to me.
In this article, I’ll discuss the offline and online promotions for the Apple TV‘s American science fiction psychological thriller television series, ‘Severance‘ and the Marvel Studios‘ American superhero film, ‘Avengers: Doomsday‘.
Pop-up Marketing for ‘Severance‘ in London:
Before the start of ‘Severance‘ season 2, Apple TV released a video showcasing the series-themed pop-up installation inside the Grand Central Station, New York City, to promote the thriller.
The promotional video was titled ‘Think inside the box‘. I enjoyed the concept and its execution!
With season 2 concluding on March 21, 2025, Apple TV has released a new video showcasing their engagement efforts with fans through a pop-up event in London. The video features actors dressed in corporate workplace attire, similar to characters from ‘Severance‘. They carry clusters of signature blue balloons adorned with the face of Mark S. (the character portrayed by Adam Scott in ‘Severance’) as they walk through the city.
As they stroll past notable London landmarks, including Tower Bridge, Big Ben, The London Eye, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and Trafalgar Square, the blue color of the balloons complements the structure of Tower Bridge and the water features in Trafalgar Square, as noted by Deadline. Eventually, the group arrives at a location where a giant balloon-like installation is positioned.
As the actors walked around the installation, the ‘Severance’ theme song was played, and an excited user posted the same on ‘X‘. The cast of ‘Severance‘, including Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Zach Cherry, Tramell Tillman, Gwendoline Christie and the creator Dan Erickson, then pop up from among the swarm of actors and greet the fans.
Watch the video below…
The Roaring Success of Marvel‘s Livestream for the Cast Announcement of ‘Avengers: Doomsday‘ Movie:
The Super Bowl trailer of ‘Deadpool & Wolverine‘ from last year is currently the most viewed trailer of all time. But the long live stream that Marvel Studios conducted this week is 5 times more than the social volume of the former, as per Deadline.
The live stream was intended to announce the cast of ‘Avengers: Doomsday‘. A total of 27 chairs, each marked with the name of a character, were revealed. Every 15 minutes or so, a new chair was showcased. Robert Downey Jr., who was announced for ‘Avengers: Doomsday‘ as the villain Doctor Doom at Comic-Con (A fan convention conducted at San Diego) in July 2024, appeared as the last member, and the only person in the cast announcement in the live stream. While the audience had mixed feelings about the lengthy duration of the event, Marvel Studios‘ efforts resulted in 275 million digital views and 3.1 million mentions on social media. The hashtag #AvengersDoomsDay trended at the top of Twitter/X for over seven hours, and after 24 hours, the official Marvel YouTube live stream reached the #2 spot on trending.
The excitement surrounding the live stream led many contemporary movie franchises to join in. Here are a few examples…
Here are some positive comments from social media about the live stream…
Marvel Studios’ hard work not only dominated conversations for a time. It also sparked ongoing discussions among fans about the characters and actors yet to be announced. This excitement is largely due to Marvel Studios teasing another upcoming cast announcement.