After nearly a decade off the air, Dos Equis is reviving one of advertising’s most iconic characters: The Most Interesting Man in the World, once again portrayed by Jonathan Goldsmith.
Originally running from 2006 to 2016, the campaign became a full-blown cultural phenomenon, spawning memes, late-night parodies, and enduring brand recall that helped more than triple the size of the Dos Equis business. Even today, more than half of beer drinkers reportedly associate the character with the brand solely based on imagery.
Rather than simply reintroducing a familiar face, Dos Equis built a narrative around why the character’s return matters now. According to a recent Talker Research study cited by the brand, one in four Americans say they feel stuck in monotonous routines. The campaign leans into that cultural malaise, positioning the Most Interesting Man not just as a spokesperson, but as an antidote to predictability.
The return marks the next chapter of the brand’s long-running “Stay Thirsty” platform, with a new 45-second commercial debuting during Monday night’s college football title-game broadcast. The rallying cry is familiar—“Stay Thirsty, My Friends”—but the timing is deliberate, aimed at reigniting curiosity and a sense of adventure for a new generation of drinkers. Watch below:
“This campaign may have been off the air for years, but the love for it never faded,” said Alison Payne, CMO of HEINEKEN USA. “Our research showed 83% of people exposed to the original work wanted to see it return, with brand recall testing in the 97th percentile. That told us the time was right.”
Leading up to the reveal, Dos Equis quietly seeded intrigue with a series of unbranded teaser spots featuring “The Least Most Interesting Man,” a painfully dull counterpart shown ironing socks and building ships in bottles. The lack of overt branding relied on the character’s unmistakable tone, music, and mythology to do the signaling—and audiences picked up on it. Watch below:
The official return spot reveals the character regaining his memory and swagger after spotting a Dos Equis in the back of his fridge, setting off a new run of adventures. To celebrate, the brand is hosting a high-profile Sailgate event near the college football championship in Miami, bringing together a mix of athletes, entertainers, and cultural figures, including Gabrielle Union, Fuerza Regida, Oz Pearlman, and Miles Chamley-Watson.
Looking ahead, Dos Equis plans to feature the character throughout 2026 and beyond, blending unseen moments from his past with new, increasingly over-the-top exploits. The next chapter unfolds during another major football broadcast on January 25, with future appearances set to include tornado chasing, magician-stomping, and more improbable feats designed to inspire fans—old and new—to stay thirsty for stories worth telling.
After all, Dos Equis isn’t just selling beer. It’s betting that in an era of endless scrolling and sameness, the most interesting thing a brand can offer is permission to live a little more boldly.
CREDITS:
BRAND: Dos Equis, Heineken USA
AGENCY: LePub New York
- President: Lea Mastrobert
- Chief Creative Officer: Jim Curtis
- Executive Creative Director: Jexy Holman
- Creative Director: Sean Buckhorn
- Art Director: Gonzalo Navarro
- Strategy Director: Cordelia Diamond
- Strategy Director: Caroline May
- Data Manager: Lorna Ruane
- Account Director: Tori Pierce
- Account Director: Alexandra Klein
- Account Executive: Emely Escobar
- Executive Producer: Courtney Trent
- Producer: Kendra Crone
- Managing Director: Tasha Royzina
- Business Affairs Director: Robin Oksenhendler
- Business Affairs Manager: Natalie Roback
Additional Agency Partners:
- Tag (Americas)
- Amplified
- Influential
Le Truc:
- Creative Director: Juan Aguilar
- Creative Director: Maddy Baldwin
- Chief Strategy Officer: Katy Alonzo
MEDIA AGENCY: Dentsu North America
PRODUCTION COMPANY: SMUGGLER
- Director: Ivan Zachariáš
- Director of Photography: Jan Velický
- Executive Producer: Patrick Milling-Smith
- Executive Producer: Brian Carmody
- Executive Producer: Allison Kunzman
- Managing Director: Sue Yeon Ahn
- Producer: Nick Landon
- Production Manager: Alice Hopgoo
- Production Designer: Robin Brown
COLOR: PFX
Colorist: Ondřej Stibingr
VFX: Parliament
- VFX Lead: Phil Crowe
- Creative Director: Miles Essmiller
- Creative Director: Tom Graham
- Creative: Lily Cunningham
- Creative: Myong Choi
- Creative: Juan Zavala
- Producer: Emma Hertz
- Producer: Mario Kotevski
EDIT: Publicis Production
- Editor: Julia Marshall
- Editor: Dana Apuzzo
EDIT: Robota
Editor: Filip Malasek
MUSIC/SOUND: Human
- Managing Director: James Dean Wells
- Sound Producer: Nicole Riolo
- Creative: Morgan Visconti
- Composer: Thomas Keery
- Composer: Jon Taylor Hubbell
PR AGENCY: MBooth
Colin Costello is the West Coast Editor of Reel 360 News. Contact him at colin@reel360.com or follow him on LinkedIn.
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