Well, we got the vibe right. The actual commercials? Not so much. After looking at the 78th Emmy nominations for Outstanding Commercial, one thing is clear: Emmy voters once again leaned toward craft, cinematic scale, emotional storytelling and big agency-production company firepower. That part we saw coming.
The nominees themselves, however, served up a reminder that the commercial category is never as easy to predict as it looks from the outside.
This year’s nominated spots include work for Levi’s, adidas, Apple, Nike and Coinbase, with agencies and production companies including TBWA\Chiat\Day LA, TBWA\Media Arts Lab, Wieden+Kennedy, Lola USA, Isle of Any, Somesuch, Smuggler, Iconoclast and MJZ.
Translation: the category is stacked.
The nominees are:
Backstory — Levi’s
Agency: TBWA\Chiat\Day LA
Production company: Somesuch Los Angeles
Backyard Legends — adidas World Cup
Agency: Lola USA
Production company: Smuggler
A Critter Carol — Apple
Agency: TBWA\Media Arts Lab
Production company: Smuggler
I’m Not Remarkable — Apple
Agency: Apple
Production company: Somesuch
Why Do It — Nike
Agency: Wieden+Kennedy
Production company: Iconoclast
Your Way Out — Coinbase
Agency: Isle of Any
Production company: MJZ
The biggest takeaway? Apple landed two nominations, which should surprise absolutely no one who has followed this category. Apple continues to be one of advertising’s most reliable Emmy players, and this year the brand made the field with two very different pieces of work.
A Critter Carol, created by TBWA\Media Arts Lab with Smuggler, gives Apple a crafted, character-driven holiday-style contender, while I’m Not Remarkable, created by Apple with Somesuch, appears to sit in the more emotional, human-centered Apple lane. That range matters. Apple can play whimsical, cinematic, intimate or technical, and Emmy voters keep responding.
Nike also made the cut with Why Do It, created by Wieden+Kennedy and produced by Iconoclast. If there is one brand besides Apple that always feels like it belongs in this category, it is Nike. The brand has spent decades turning sports advertising into mythmaking, and Why Do It continues that tradition. Nike ads rarely just sell shoes. They sell nerve, identity, ambition and the idea that sports are where personal legend begins.
Levi’s earned a nomination for Backstory, with TBWA\Chiat\Day LA and Somesuch Los Angeles behind the work. That pairing alone tells you the spot likely hit the Emmy sweet spot: strong brand heritage, polished filmmaking and a story built around identity rather than product specs. Levi’s has the advantage of being a brand with real cultural memory, and Emmy voters often like commercials that feel rooted in something larger than a campaign window.
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Adidas also broke through with Backyard Legends, a World Cup spot from Lola USA and Smuggler. Soccer work can sometimes get swallowed by the scale of the sport, but when it connects, it reaches a global audience. The title alone suggests a smart bridge between childhood play and global ambition, which is exactly the kind of emotional sports advertising that can travel.
Then there is Coinbase’s Your Way Out, from Isle of Any and MJZ. This may be the most interesting nominee in the group because crypto advertising can be a tough needle to thread. The strongest version of that work has to move past jargon and make the category feel human, urgent or emotionally legible. With MJZ on production, the spot likely had the visual polish to compete with the more traditional heavyweights.
What is notable is what did not make it. Some of the spots we thought had a strong shot, including more purpose-led, celebrity-driven and access-oriented campaigns, were left out. That is not necessarily a knock on the work. It is just a reminder that Outstanding Commercial is its own strange animal. It rewards advertising, yes, but it also rewards a particular kind of advertising: beautifully made, instantly graspable, emotionally clear and backed by undeniable craft.
The nominated field also confirms how much production company pedigree matters. Somesuch appears twice. Smuggler appears twice. MJZ, Iconoclast and Somesuch Los Angeles round out a list that reads like a who’s who of high-end commercial filmmaking.
So yes, yesterday we may have whiffed on the exact nominees. But the broader read was right: Emmy voters wanted craft. They wanted scale. They wanted emotion. They wanted brands that could turn a commercial into a small film.
They just picked a different six than we did.
And honestly, that is what makes this category fun. Outstanding Commercial is where advertising, filmmaking, brand strategy and cultural timing all collide. Sometimes the funniest spot gets in. Sometimes the most emotional spot wins. Sometimes Apple walks in with two nominations and everyone else has to pretend to be surprised.
This year, the race belongs to Levi’s, adidas, Apple, Nike and Coinbase.
May the best brand film win.
Colin Costello is the West Coast Editor of Reel 360 News. Contact him at colin@reel360.com or follow him on LinkedIn.
