October came in hot, weird, and wonderfully unhinged, precisely the way the ad gods intended. If September was the warm-up, October said, “Hold my beer… preferably Garage Beer, preferably while Jason Kelce body-checks a Predator.”
Brands didn’t just show up this month; they swung. Hard. From theme-park carnage to emerald-hued luxury to a faux horror trailer that made me side-eye my own phone, October gave us some of the most imaginative, culturally dialed-in work of the year.
It was also the month dogs officially replaced humans, at least according to Life360, and honestly, who am I to argue? As someone who has spent far too much time observing humans (in meetings, at AFM, on dating apps), the data checks out.
Hollywood synergy also had its moment. Lexus paired with Wicked: For Good and delivered a holiday tie-in that wasn’t phoned in for once. IW Group crafted a spot that actually felt like a moment — a gentle swirl of story and spectacle where the Lexus LX didn’t upstage the magic but danced with it. And yes, it still somehow made me want to test-drive something I absolutely cannot afford.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Hatch went full spooky-season with a faux horror trailer starring Kiernan Shipka, a clever reminder that the most frightening thing in the bedroom isn’t the bump in the night, but the doom-scroll rectangle glowing inches from your face.
Meanwhile, Six Flags said, “Cute. Hold our severed clown head,” and dropped an eight-minute arthouse horror short that doubled as a Halloween hype film. It’s moody, stylish, and gleefully deranged — exactly what fans want.
So, ICYMI, here are the best ads of October — the work that thrilled, chilled, sparkled, and occasionally snarled. Enjoy the ride.
Six Flags puts a stake in Halloween with a terrifying short – TMA
This year, the amusement park giant returned with an even bigger, bolder, and scarier film that showcases Halloween attractions at participating parks. It is less an ad and more a short horror movie, nearly eight minutes, created by horror aficionados for guests who love their scares.
Titled “Come Out and Play,” the film leans into the arthouse side of the genre, with a steady mood of dread, hair-raising sound design, and a shadowy threat named Smiley. He is searching for a friendly face, in a manner of speaking. The intention is simple: to make viewers feel the fear they will experience at Six Flags this Halloween. Watch below:
All the Best People Are Dogs, according to Life360 campaign – Alto
In October, Life360 celebrated that unshakable bond with the launch of its newest innovation, Pet GPS, a tracker that brings your pets into the same app as your family’s humans (and all their questionable decisions). To mark the launch, Life360 has followed its viral hit musical, I Think of You (Dying), with an equally absurd and heartfelt sequel: “All the Best People Are Dogs.”
Developed by Alto, the new animated musical is another tongue-in-cheek addition to Life360’s acclaimed “Family-Proof Your Family” campaign, which earlier this year took over social media, garnering more than 10 million impressions and 450,000 shares.
IW Group has created an OzMazing spot for Lexus x Wicked – IW Group
It’s no secret that Wicked: For Good is coming in hot. Lexus, building on their tie-in last year, came back with “Magic in the Air,” created by IW Group, earning our Reel Ad of the Week.
The casting choice is the masterstroke. Director Jon M. Chu appears with his wife, Kristin, and their daughter, Stevie Sky, born the same day Wicked premiered in Los Angeles. That real-life connection gives the spot a quiet authenticity. We’re not just driving to a premiere; we’re riding along with a family whose lives have been intertwined with this world.
It’s Garage Beer x Jason Kelce vs The Predator in “Thermal Buzz” – Garage Beer (in-house)
Sometimes, the best ads don’t just sell, they hunt. For Spooktobeer (see what I did there?), Garage Beer teamed up with 20th Century Studios and Jason Kelce for Thermal Buzz, a tongue-in-cheek short film celebrating the upcoming release of Predator: Badlands.
Part brand spot, part parody, Thermal Buzz takes fans deep into the Predator universe… through the eyes of a few beer-loving humans who probably wouldn’t last long in the jungle. The 30-second spot, running during select NFL games and across @drinkgaragebeer’s social channels, pays homage to the original 1987 classic, complete with thermal vision gags, over-the-top one-liners, and a heavy pour of Garage Beer’s “beer-flavored beer.”
Kiernan Shipka gets night terrors in faux Hatch trailer – Hatch (in-house)
Sleep-tech brand Hatch got spooky-season clever with Goodnight, Phone, a horror-style faux trailer starring Kiernan Shipka (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Longlegs) that reminds you the scariest thing in your bedroom might be the glow in your hand.
Shipka plays Ava, newly moved into a quiet house where late-night scrolling is her comfort… until her feed starts feeding back. Posts bleed into reality, faces watch from the glass, and even her reflection turns against her. The one thing in the room that doesn’t answer to the algorithm? The calm, steady glow of her partner’s Hatch smart sleep clock on the nightstand.
This wasn’t a month of “ads.” It was a month where brands flexed, blurring lines between entertainment, fandom, fashion, and pure cultural heat.
Colin Costello is the West Coast Editor of Reel 360 News. Contact him at colin@reel360.com or follow him on Twitter at @colinthewriter1
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