From female empowerment to lots of snacks, here's what to expect from Super Bowl LVIII's commercials

With awe-inspiring athletic feats and show-stopping musical performances, the Super Bowl brings viewers non-stop entertainment even during breaks in the game with imaginative — and expensive! — commercials.

This year's big game is sure to be no exception, and many advertisers have already released or teased their ads that will air while the San Francisco 49ers are playing the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. 

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The Super Bowl commercials reflect the current trends and tone in business and culture, said Steve Merino, chief creative director at Aloysius Butler & Clark, an advertising agency headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, that also has an office on South Broad Street in Philly. 

"You can kind of get a snapshot of what's going on in America," Merino said. "It's really to kind of take a look at what the rest of the year is going to look like from a content standpoint, from an advertising standpoint and from an economic standpoint."

For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, ads took on a somber tone. In 2022, it was all about futuristic concepts like crypto and electric cars. Last year, there was a focus on less-expensive goods, like snack foods and fast food restaurants, and nostalgia-inducing cameos. 

So, what are the vibes for the latest Super Bowl ads, in a year where the Super Bowl is anticipated to reach over 113 million viewers, and a 30-second spot costs an estimated $7 million?

"I think you're going to be seeing a lot of fun, funny spots," Merino predicts. "I think people look for the opportunity for levity."

As for what products and services will be advertised, this year's roster of commercials will include ads for cybersecurity and online gambling, Merino said. Continuing a trend from last year, there will also be a focus on inexpensive consumer packaged goods — as opposed to larger, more expensive items like cars — reflecting what consumers are buying these days. For instance, Popeyes fast food restaurants and Drumstick ice cream companies are making their Super Bowl commercial debuts. 

The Hershey Company will have its second-ever Super Bowl ad, a commercial for Reese's, narrated by actor Will Arnett. The ad unveils a new variety of peanut butter cup, one with a layer of caramel inside along with the usual peanut butter filling, and it toys with the emotions of a group of traditional Reese's fans along the way. 

"A lot of (advertisers), they're using the opportunity to talk to 120 million people all at the same time, to say we have a new product," Merino said. "And so, there's not really a good reason to spend all this money to talk to all these people unless you have something to say. For a lot of them, if they're announcing a new product line, a new offering, it's to say, 'Hey, America, this is available now.' And ideally, it's done by a brand that you probably already know. So that way they don't have to educate you on what this is ... An easy learn for a big audience."

Among the ads that will take a more serious tone, there will be spots that address social issues, including the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism promoting standing up against Jewish hate, and Doritos will have a star-studded commercial celebrating Latin culture.

Reflecting on the past year during which Greta Gerwig's "Barbie" film became a phenomenon Taylor Swift and Beyoncé embarked on record-breaking concert tours, expect commercials celebrating female empowerment, Merino said. 

Related to Swift, in particular — who is dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and is expected to be at the big game if she can make it back from Tokyo in time — the pop star's presence at Kansas City's games during NFL season attracted viewers not previously interested in football, at least not the regular season. While Super Bowl commercials generally are jam-packed with celebrities, the cameos and topics of this year's commercials should reflect Swift's influence, according to Merino.

"If Taylor Swift is attracting a slightly younger, more female skewed audience, the celebrities (in the commercials) will reinforce that. And so it'll be more people who are social celebrities," Merino said. "Also just the content ... There are multiple cosmetic advertisers this year, and that's never happened before. I think you can definitely correlate that to Taylor Swift, specifically, attracting a younger female audience to the NFL."

NYX Cosmetics is airing its first-ever Super Bowl ad, starring rapper Cardi B, and Dove is returning to the Super Bowl ad space for the first time in decades with a campaign promoting body positivity among young girls in sports.

Another commercial already generating buzz is a Squarespace commercial which will feature the Super Bowl ad directorial debut of Martin Scorsese, recently nominated for "Killers of the Flower Moon." The website-building company released a teaser for the commercial, featuring Scorsese and his daughter, Francesca.

With the saturation of star-studded, over-the-top ads, it is difficult for companies to stand out with their 30-second spots. They must produce a commercial that is catchy — there are still people out there quoting "Wassup?" from Budweiser ads that aired nearly 20 years ago — but they also must get viewers to remember what they are advertising.

An ad that Merino cites as particularly successful is for Paramount+ which features assets from across the network's portfolio, including "The Drew Barrymore Show" host Drew Barrymore and "Star Trek: Picard" actor Sir Patrick Stewart, as well as animated characters from "Hey Arnold" and "Peppa Pig." Another standout is DoorDash's campaign to give away every product advertised during the Super Bowl, delivered through DoorDash, of course. 

"It's really about cutting through the moment, you know," Merino said. "There's a lot that's going on just in the game itself. There's all sorts of pomp and circumstance. And then when you cut to the commercials, they feel the same way. There's celebrities and things you've never seen before. So if you can literally just get people to pay attention for 30 seconds, that's half the battle.

"The other half is connecting what you're seeing to what we're offering from a brand. So celebrities don't just get the job done anymore ... Just having a quirky celebrity there isn't enough. You have to connect what they're doing to what you're able to offer."

Super Bowl LVIII between the 49ers and the Chiefs takes place Sunday, Feb. 11, in Las Vegas. Kick off is at 6:30 p.m. on CBS, but for many the action really starts during the first commercial break.