Behold the Boogeyman: Brands Latch Onto Halloween for Creepy Campaigns

It wouldn’t be a proper Halloween without a nightmare-inducing clown, and Six Flags obliges with just such a creature that terrorizes young housemates and then backseat drives them to a theme park outing.

The 5-minute film, a narrative first for the brand from creative agency TMA, leans heavily into the horror genre, adding a tension-busting, comedic kicker. The video, dubbed “Tick. Tick. Tick,” aims to help Six Flags parks in five North American markets hype their annual dive into the dark side, targeting teens and young adults.

“Halloween is having a huge cultural moment, and for us the time was ripe to up the ante on how we engage with consumers and immerse them into our unique Halloween experience,” according to Stella Smith, vice president of advertising and creative services at Six Flags Entertainment Co.

Six Flags, with the eerie tagline “don’t keep fear waiting,” is one of a number of marketers—Opendoor, Samuel Adams, Angry Orchard, and Supercell among them—taking advantage of spooky season.

It’s no wonder that brands of all stripes, chasing consumer demand and pop culture, continue to flock to the holiday. Last fall, revenge spending on Halloween broke records at $12.2 billion, topping pre-pandemic levels, per the National Retail Federation. 2024’s tally may be slightly less, but consumers are still expected to shell out about $11.6 billion, per NRF data.

The 25- to 34-year-old age group leads the pack in spending for the holiday, according to NRF, though 72% of consumers across demos say they will take part in various festivities like handing out candy, decorating their homes and yards, dressing in costume, carving a pumpkin, or throwing or attending a party.

While this is a sneak peek into Halloween marketing, it won’t be the last story. Continue checking ADWEEK for more creepy coverage this month, but read on for some early standout campaigns.

The bloodsucker next door

Though the real estate category might not seem to have an organic link to Halloween, Opendoor has latched onto the creepy holiday for its latest campaign. 

And its agency, VaynerMedia, backed up the move with the following consumer insight: top-performing content for the brand has traditionally featured homeowners who kickstart the selling process based on seasonal factors.

The research gave rise to a spot called “Vampire” starring an anti-social nightwalker and her cheerfully gardening neighbor, who’s planted a whole mess of garlic. That obviously doesn’t sit well—hissing ensues—and the vamp lists her house.

Though fourth quarter, with its cluster of holidays and activities, can be daunting, “we wanted to remind homeowners that selling a home during the fall and winter months can also be the right move,” according to David Corns, CMO of Opendoor.

“Vampire” comes from Emmy-winning director duo Sean and Ryan McIlraith and Eva Nosidam Productions.

Spine-chilling swag

Siblings in the Boston Beer Company, Angry Orchard and Samuel Adams have jumped on the stunt bandwagon, a common holiday-pegged tactic, with separate programs from creative agency MullenLowe.

Angry Orchard hard cider launches a trick that looks like a treat in the form of a sneaky Hide & Shriek Prank Pack. While the cans appear to be ordinary spiked ciders, they actually release “a startling surprise—the angriest blood-curdling scream” when opened, per the brand, giving those who are punked a jump-scare but no booze to soothe their frazzled nerves.

That’s naughty or, in brand-speak, “knotty.”

Halloween gives companies “permission to be playfully unfiltered,” according to Matt Withington, senior director of marketing at Angry Orchard, who noted that there will be repeated product drops of the decoy six-packs through the month.

‘A cold Sam Adams’

Meantime, popular craft brew Samuel Adams has developed a cheeky at-home séance kit that’s meant to conjure the spirit of its namesake, the long-gone American statesman. Hence the tagline, “share a cold Sam Adams with a cold Sam Adams.”

The kits come with handy step-by-step instructions, an elaborately framed portrait of the Sons of Liberty activist, vials of Boston dirt and Samuel Adams hops, pint glasses, and a beer-can candle.

The recommendation is that consumers pair the whole exercise with seasonal brews such as pumpkin-tinged Jack-O, hot-selling Octoberfest, or Flannel Fest.

Actually bringing forth the ghost of Adams is entirely on consumers, though, as the brand’s disclaimer says the kit comes with “no guarantees or warranties of any kind.” And hands off, children, the game is for 21 and older.

Wanna play a game?

A skeptical friend group doesn’t believe the urban legend that’s making the rounds about mobile game Clash Royale. The way you die in the game is the way you perish in real life? That can’t be true, they say in a chilling long-form ad from David New York.

But they soon find out otherwise. Insert maniacal laughter here.

“A cursed item is a classic horror film trope, so we thought, ‘what if the cursed item was our iconic game?’” said André Toledo, chief creative officer of David New York. “Our partners at Supercell saw the entertainment potential in this and encouraged us to commit to the horror genre.”

“The Royale Curse,” with the tagline “lose if you dare,” comes from director Kelsey Taylor as Clash Royale rolls out a series of updates and Halloween-pegged in-game events.

Check out the article in Adweek: HERE