Overpriced cosmetics were put on trial this Sunday, as makeup brand e.l.f. recruited top scripted and unscripted legal stars for its 2024 Super Bowl ad.
The brand, known for capitalizing on pop culture to promote its wares, last came to the big game with comeback queen Jennifer Coolidge in a spot written by her “White Lotus” creator Mike White. This year, they called on several alumni from the streaming megahit “Suits.”
Gina Torres, Rick Hoffman and Sarah Rafferty all reprised their roles as New York City litigators, making a case against $92 foundation before a wary Judge Judy Sheindlin. Other cameos included singer Meghan Trainor, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” star HeidiNCloset, comedian Benito Skinner and Ronald Gladden, star of the breakout reality series “Jury Duty.”
“For years we’ve been leaning into emerging cultural insights to help shape e.l.f. into the water cooler brand that it’s so clearly become,” Lisette Sand-Freedman, co-founder and chief visionary officer of Shadow, e.l.f.’s longtime creative agency partner, told Variety. “This year, between the record-breaking streaming numbers for ‘Suits,’ the viral joyousness of ‘Jury Duty,’ and the triumphant re-emergence of Judge Judy, we were quick to pick up on the signal that courtroom drama was once again consuming culture. It was the perfect creative playground to defend e.l.f.’s case for quality and affordable cosmetics.”
Ahead of game day, Variety caught up with Hoffman and Rafferty, who have been relishing the second life the show has found on Netflix.
“It was unbelievably shocking and incredibly gratifying, after all of our hard work it felt like something in the universe was righted,” said Hoffman, who played the nebbish Louis Litt on the series, which also starred the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle.
“The idea that the show is providing a service, an escape or a way for people to connect with their kids and their loved ones, it’s really meaningful,” added Rafferty.
There has been a “scary” side effect to their newfound fandom, Hoffman said. “There are so many people that come up to me thanking me and the cast for inspiring them to go to law school. That scares the shit out of me. We were pretending! None of us would get into law school.”
NBC announced last year that a companion series, “Suits: LA,” was in active development. Hoffman and Rafferty were mum on their potential involvement, but did have some feedback for their creatives.
“Picture this. A huge drone shot sweeping over the hills right of Oklahoma. All of a sudden you see Louis Litt and he’s right in the middle of these these beautiful hills. He starts singing ‘The Sound of Music,’” said Hoffman. “We open on ‘Suits: Kansas.’ All the cases are about, like, cattle and oil refining. It would be incredible.”
Watch the 2024 e.l.f. Cosmetics Super Bowl Ad:
