Google reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the 22nd annual Kellogg School Super Bowl Advertising Review, with its Gemini-powered spot “New Home” earning the highest marks from the panel. The emotionally grounded ad, which shows how AI can help people navigate major life transitions, marked the fourth time Google has topped the Kellogg rankings and stood out for pairing human storytelling with a clear product role.

Super Bowl LX is officially in the books, and the marketing machine did exactly what it always does. For weeks, our feeds were flooded with everything from fully baked cinematic flexes to cryptic 15-second teasers engineered to spark just enough intrigue. Now that the confetti’s been swept up and the Seahawks won, we can finally judge what actually held up when it mattered most: 30 seconds on the biggest stage in advertising.

These days, you just can’t escape AI. And now you can’t when it comes to Super Bowl ads either. But hey, there were some good ones. For me, Claude’s spot stood out. It featured a chatbot in human form who, while giving advice to a young man looking to get abs, suddenly veers into an ad read for a fitness product.

Just ahead of the Big Game, Nissan is celebrating one of America’s most sacred game-day rituals, chips and dip, with a playful new social campaign spotlighting the versatility of the 2026 Nissan Rogue. The lighthearted activation stars chef, actor, and unapologetic dip enthusiast Matty Matheson, who introduces the fictional “Nissan Dip Seat,” a tongue-in-cheek invention designed to protect one of football Sunday’s most precious commodities.

Thirty years ago, during the Big Game, a Pepsi loyalty promotion promised something so audacious it became legend: collect enough points and you could get a jet. One man believed it. John Leonard followed the rules, gathered the points, and showed up expecting the reward he’d earned. What followed instead was a legal battle, a cultural punchline, and a story so improbable it later became the subject of a popular documentary.

MANSCAPED is officially taking its place on advertising’s biggest stage, and it’s doing so with puppets, power ballads, and a whole lot of unwanted hair. Talk about a hairband! The global men’s grooming brand will make its Super Bowl debut just before kickoff on February 8 with “Hair Ballad,” a :30 spot that turns shaving into an unexpectedly emotional musical experience.

Jeep may be sitting out the Super Bowl broadcast this year, but the brand is still making waves during Big Game week. Instead of a game-day media buy, Jeep has dropped an online-only film timed to land amid the Super Bowl advertising blitz, introducing the all-new 2026 Jeep Cherokee hybrid with the help of an unlikely star: Big Mouth Billy Bass…

Lay’s is showing up to the Super Bowl with a rare double play this year: two national ads and a fan-facing activation, from Highdive, all centered on the humble potato and the people behind it. The brand’s Big Game presence blends heartfelt storytelling with playful immediacy, reinforcing Lay’s connection with generations of growers while demonstrating how quickly a potato can become a chip.

NERDS is returning to the Big Game for the third consecutive year, this time with a juicier twist. The Ferrara-owned candy brand is introducing NERDS Juicy Gummy Clusters, its most significant product innovation since the breakout success of NERDS Gummy Clusters, in a new 30-second spot titled “Taste Buds.” The ad stars cultural tastemaker Andy Cohen alongside the brand’s beloved “Gummy” character.

Sometimes love means taking matters into your own hands, and maybe stacking a few crisps along the way. For the biggest snacking moment of the year, Chicago-based Pringles is teaming up with Once You POP Star Sabrina Carpenter to deliver a playful, unconventional romance in its ninth consecutive Big Game campaign, “Pringleleo,” developed by BBDO New York. Set to air in the third quarter, the spot reimagines modern relationships through a distinctly Pringles lens.

Grubhub is making a bold play to reset expectations around restaurant delivery by tackling the issue consumers complain about most: fees. In its first-ever Big Game national commercial, the Chicago-founded delivery platform teams with Academy Award winner George Clooney and acclaimed filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos (Bugonia, Poor Things) to introduce a new, category-defying benefit. Under the banner “Grubhub Will Eat the Fees,” the company will cover delivery and service fees on restaurant orders over $50.

While Old El Paso has long dominated the space, Ortega is making a play to shake things up. The B&G Foods flagship brand remains the top-selling taco sauce in the country and a familiar household name, but sales have declined in recent years amid rising competition from newer players such as PepsiCo’s Siete and restaurant-driven retail brands, including Taco Bell, licensed by The Kraft Heinz Company.

Molly Ringwald has made it clear she’s not interested in seeing the films of John Hughes remade and says the late writer-director felt the same way. The 57-year-old actor, who starred in Hughes’ defining run of teen classics Sixteen Candles (1984), The Breakfast Club (1985), and Pretty in Pink (1986), said the filmmaker never wanted his movies revisited or reimagined.

After a period of restructuring and creative evolution, Walkabout Theater Company returns to Chicago with the production that launched the company more than two decades ago. Poor Poor Lear, written by Nina Sallinen and Katja Krohn, will run March 12 through March 15 at Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division St. The revival also marks the return of Walkabout’s founding artistic director, Kristan Schmidt, who assumes directorial duties for the 2026 production.

Catherine O’Hara’s family will honor the late actress with a private celebration of life, according to details shared in an obituary released following her death. The Home Alone and Beetlejuice star died Friday at the age of 71 after what was described as a brief illness. The obituary noted that a memorial will be held privately by her family, including her husband, Bo Welch, and their sons, Matthew and Luke.

NBC has spent decades building one of television’s most reliable brands around the Law & Order franchise. Created by Dick Wolf, the legal and law enforcement universe has produced multiple long-running series, including Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. At the same time, Wolf successfully launched NBC’s One Chicago universe, which became a ratings powerhouse with…

Each year on February 2, the movie Groundhog Day reenters the cultural conversation, looping endlessly on television and streaming platforms as audiences revisit one of the most enduring comedies of the 1990s. More than three decades after its release, the film remains closely tied to the holiday it immortalized, as well as to the Illinois town where it was filmed.

The death of Catherine O’Hara at age 71 has prompted an emotional outpouring from colleagues, collaborators and friends who worked alongside her across a career that spanned more than five decades. Revered for her singular comic brilliance and deep humanity, O’Hara died Friday in Los Angeles after a brief illness. From her unforgettable turns in Home Alone, Schitt’s Creek…

Rachel McAdams admits she had no idea just how much animosity audiences would feel toward her iconic Mean Girls character, Regina George. The actress, now 47, starred opposite Lindsay Lohan, Amanda Seyfried, Lacey Chabert, and Lizzy Caplan in Mark Waters’ 2004 teen comedy, which went on to become a pop culture phenomenon. McAdams played Regina, the ruthless queen bee of the Plastics, whose downfall remains one of the film’s most cheered moments.

Clorox is expanding its role in everyday home wellness with the launch of Clorox PURE Allergen Neutralizers, a new line of daily air and fabric sprays designed to neutralize common household allergens before they trigger symptoms. Developed in partnership with BBDO Chicago, the campaign introduces Clorox PURE as a proactive solution for managing non-living allergens, including pollen, dust mite matter, and pet dander.

Catherine O’Hara, the beloved actress whose five-decade career spanned sketch comedy, film, television, and voice work, has died. She was 71. Her manager confirmed the news, and her agency said O’Hara passed away Friday at her home in Los Angeles following a brief illness. Born March 4, 1954, in Toronto, O’Hara emerged as a foundational figure of modern sketch comedy as a member of the legendary…

Terminix is giving pest control a voice, and it’s surprisingly melodic. The brand’s new national campaign, “Ahhh,” turns prevention into a performance, transforming the familiar relief of a pest-free home into a full-blown musical moment. Developed with BBDO Chicago, the campaign reimagines Terminix’s long-standing “AHH!” mnemonic as an anthem of reassurance. In the spots, Terminix technicians appear in choir robes, harmonizing lines like “No bugs here!” as they emerge from crawl spaces, basements, and other pest-prone corners of the home.

Editor's Note: Barry Burdiak is an award-winning creative director at Chicago-based independent agency Schafer Condon Carter (SCC). With more than three decades in the agency world, Burdiak has built a career working primarily with Fortune 200 brands across categories, including packaged goods, quick-service restaurants, financial services, insurance, beverages, beer, and beyond. There’s a persistent myth in Super Bowl advertising: winning requires going bigger every year - louder, more famous, more expensive.

Two award-winning short films produced through Chicago State University’s CSU CINEMA program will begin streaming on Tubi on February 1, offering national visibility for emerging Chicago filmmakers. The films are Whole, co-directed by Ericka Henderson, Ryonn Gloster and Evelio Zavala and written and produced by Gloster, and Contentment, directed by Skyy Dade and written and produced by LaToya Johnson…

Here's a reminder of warm days ahead and fun in the sun because nobody does summer better than Chicago. Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) unveiled the 2026 lineup of Chicago festivals and events, kicking off in May and running through the holiday season. Showcasing the city’s creative energy, diverse cultural landscape and neighborhood pride, this season features beloved classics alongside dynamic programs that invite residents and visitors to experience Chicago’s best in music, food, art and community gatherings.