United Airlines is getting a Hollywood cameo, tying its brand to one of the spring’s most anticipated sequels.
United Airlines Debuts Flight Attendant Ad Campaign, Will Appear In “The Devil Wears Prada 2”
United Airlines has shared an internal memo, reviewed by Live And Let’s Fly, highlighting its role in The Devil Wears Prada 2, which hits theaters this Friday, 20 years after the original film.
According to the memo, United will debut a co-branded advertising campaign tied to the movie and also has a presence inside the film itself.
The memo adds that additional United flight attendants appear in the movie itself, including one employee who reportedly has a speaking role.
A Clever Brand Fit
Ok, confession from me. The original Devil Wears Prada is one of my favorite movies of all time…a movie I’ve watched over and over through the years. I’m really looking forward to the sequel and hope I won’t be let down.
For United, this is a fairly natural partnership as it aims to capture a great segment of the premium market. The Devil Wears Prada is built around fashion, image, travel, status, and New York ambition. Airlines are part of that world, especially a global carrier like United that wants to associate itself with premium travel and aspirational branding (though I’d think that Miranda would fly private?).
Shoes are one of the most recognizable parts of the United flight attendant uniform and these red high heels fit neatly into the visual language of a fashion-centered movie franchise…will these become standard uniform issue? 😉
Why Airlines Like United Embrace Film Cameos
Movie placements can be more valuable than traditional ads because they place an airline inside a cultural moment rather than simply interrupting one. If done well, viewers may associate the carrier with glamour, relevance, and reach. If done poorly, it just looks forced.
There’s a history between United and Hollywood.
Another movie I love was the Tom Hanks/Catherine Zeta-Jones/Stanley Tucci classic The Terminal, in which United Airlines also had a big roll (in New York JFK of all places…). United was prominent in Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner.
> Read More: Sidney Poitier, United Airlines, And Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner
This time, there is something charming about United spotlighting front-line employees rather than celebrities or executives (ahem, Tom Brady).
The most interesting part of the memo is not the movie itself, but the human angle: the ORD-based flight attendant from Thailand in the ad above is living out what she describes as her American dream through a Hollywood campaign. What a cool opportunity! Hopefully she and other flight attendants, apparently one with speaking role in the new movie, will give us more insight in the days to come about their roles, once the movie debuts. But yes, I’m also curious to see how exactly United will play into the new movie.
CONCLUSION
United Airlines is promoting The Devil Wears Prada 2 through a co-branded campaign and will have a cameo in the film itself, with multiple flight attendants featured. (We will see on Friday how visible the partnership actually is!)
Either way, it is a smart, lighthearted marketing move that takes United back to Hollywood.
UPDATE: A Flyertalk member provides this update:
Well, I got dragged to a movie premiere, first time in a long, long time.
Kudos to United’s marketing people. There is a scene filmed inside a United plane complete with the mention of Polaris and what seems to be real UA FAs. I won’t spoil the details for anyone who may go see the movie but it presents an accurate yet complimentary image of United.
To me the biggest airline use in a movie, along with marketing partnership, was probably AA in Up In The Air.
And maybe AA in Home Alone?
And perhaps FedEx in Castaway…
I think Aaron is right that Up In The Air was the best airline product placement ever, but when I think of AA in movies I also think first of Home Alone!
It is also worth recalling the 2006 Oscar-nominated movie “United 93”, which is a direct, critical, and dramatic recounting of the events on United Airlines Flight 93 on September 11, 2001. Undoubtedly, this motion picture remains the most significant, albeit tragic, film highlighting the airline in popular culture.
That’s different. That movie was about a specific incident involving that particular flight. As opposed to all the others, which were about marketing and product placement.
Best UA in Hollywood films is Terminal with Tom Hanks!
That’ll do. Having said that, Miranda Priestly flies private. Or La Premiere in a pinch.
The biggest botch an airline made was SQ turning down Crazy Rich Asians…what a mistake
I would agree!
Though I was surprised no other airlines jumped into that opportunity. Afterall Singapore’s riches has very little to do with singaporean brands.
The Devil Wears Prada (2006) was truly a fantastic film. Let’s hope that The Devil Wears Prada 2, which will be released almost 20 years later, will be just as great. Even tough the first movie is really hard to top.
I’m sending this from UA 1 en route from SFO to Singapore. There is also in-flight brand placement! There are red heels subtly integrated into the IFE system.
We should know more today!