The Disappearing Act: Lupin's Creative Marketing

 

Netflix advertising the release of French drama Lupin: Part 3 

Lupin is a Netflix mystery thriller inspired by Arsène Lupin, a fictional thief and disguise artist skilled at outsmarting his adversaries. Released in 2021, it follows the story of Assane Diop and his journey to avenge his father. To promote the release of Lupin: Part 3, Netflix's creative campaign mimicked popular luxury accessory ads. Rolex, Chanel, Hermès - ads from these brands usually show wrists, hands, and fingers covered in fine jewelry. Lupin ads were the same, with the only difference being that the valuable items were removed. Their removal was made evident by strategically placed tan lines. For those familiar with the show's plot, this was a clever allusion to the models being robbed of their jewelry - the perfect way to advertise Lupin's return.

 

Rolex ad vs Lupin ad - the clever use of tan lines to portray the removal of jewelry

A similar strategy was employed by Mexican beer brand Corona. In June 2023, the brand introduced its "We Returned the Bottle from this Ad, Return Yours" campaign. Despite promoting a different type of awareness message compared to Netflix's campaign, Corona gives an example of product removal as an effective way to convey meaning. Corona bottles were removed from the models' hands, a tactic to encourage the return of bottles after usage.  

Empty hand and bottle print left in the sand to give the impression of a missing bottle - the copy "We returned the bottle in this ad; return yours" makes the message even clearer

For both campaigns, this is creativity at its finest. Their minimalistic approaches affirms that a picture really is worth a thousand words. With the use of playful imagery, the messages are impactful and successful in persuading their audiences to tune in to Lupin: Part 3 and recycle their Corona bottles. A job well done!