Dive Brief:

• Malibu has enlisted Brian Cox, an actor known for playing serious characters, in a more laid-back role for the next iteration of its “Do Whatever Tastes Good” campaign, according to a press release.
• “Clock Off” encourages consumers to take time for themselves during the warmer months. Ads depict Cox, who has made a career depicting tough characters such as Logan Roy on “Succession,” wearing a bright pink suit before punching out right at 5:01.
• The new work was inspired by research that found U.S. consumers work an average of 15 hours of unpaid overtime per week. “Clock Off” comes three years after the Pernod Ricard flavored rum maker introduced its “Do Whatever Tastes Good” brand positioning.

Dive Insight:

Malibu is reaching out to overworked consumers with an unexpected celebrity face. While Cox is known for playing prickly roles, “Clock Off” implies even hardworking types like Logan Roy need a break. With the approach of summer, the rum-based coconut liquor is gearing up for a key sales occasion through humor and a focus on the universal need for more time off as long working hours have intensified since the pandemic.

A minute-long spot shows Cox in a bright pink suit sitting at a table in a boardroom as blue- and gray-clad businesspeople argue around him. As soon as his Malibu-branded watch strikes 5:01, he exits on roller skates, leaving his peers dumbfounded. Cox then skates along a boardwalk and ignores a work call, dropping his phone in a water pitcher carried by a waitress played by Greer Cohen, who went viral for a similar role in Charli XCX’s “360” music video.

Cox closes the ad by saying the campaign’s name — likely a sly reference to one of Logan Roy’s infamous catchphrases. The actor, who is also the voice of McDonald’s campaigns, has previously parodied his most famous role in “Overly Direct Spokesperson” ads for DirecTV. 

Malibu’s campaign was inspired by research that found 71% of U.S. consumers feel pressured to work overtime and one in five feel overworked. Additionally, the average worker engaged in 17 hours of unpaid overtime per month through after-hours communication. The survey received responses from 13,000 adults from the U.S., Greece, France, Spain, U.K., Germany and Italy. It was conducted between March 21 and March 31 by One Poll.

Malibu first embraced the “do whatever tastes good” ethos in a “Welcome to Malibu” campaign that turned the brand’s world into a hyperreal, neon-drenched and judgment-free zone. A focus on consumers grappling with burnout has recently been adopted by other marketers. Candy brand Kit Kat took a similar approach in a new campaign featuring the Break Brothers, a quartet of imposing characters who ensure people are allowed to take work breaks uninterrupted.

Pernod Ricard saw U.S. sales decline by 9% in fiscal 2024 fiscal, with a 5% decline in the Americas. The business could lose than $200 million due to the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China, finance chief Helene de Tissot said earlier this year.