Is Emirates targeting U.S. airlines with new Jennifer Aniston ad?
Relations already are frosty between the three big U.S. airlines and the three big "Gulf carriers" of the Middle East. And a new Emirates ad featuring Jennifer Aniston will likely to do little to improve them.
In its first commercial with new pitchwoman Aniston, Emirates appears to take aim at service on the big U.S. airlines as part of a dream portrayed by the Hollywood superstar.
In the ad, Aniston is on a flight that appears to resemble one on an unspecified U.S. airline. A bathrobe-clad Aniston approaches the flight attendants to ask where she can find the shower. A scoffing cabin crew tells Aniston there's no shower on the plane.
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"Well, I'm going to look pretty silly dressed like this going to the bar," Aniston responds, flashing the type of humor that made her a star on the 1990s hit sitcom "Friends."
"There's no bar here, but do have a hot towel and a bag of peanuts," one of the fictional attendants responds.
Perplexed, Aniston responds: "Emirates' planes have showers and they have bars … ."
"This isn't an Emirates plane, ma'am," another attendant responds before the entire crew begins laughing at Aniston's seemingly ridiculous statement.
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It's about that time that Aniston awakes from her sleep to find herself in a first-class suite on an Emirates Airbus A380. She realizes it was just a "nightmare," and soon recounts the dream to the bartender at the A380 bar.
While Emirates' premium customers do have access to showers and bars, the ad does not try to compare Emirates' coach class to that of the U.S. carriers.
More broadly, the ad comes amid an increasingly testy spat between the big three U.S. airlines – American, Delta and United – and the big three "Gulf carriers" of the Middle East: Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways.
The U.S. airlines allege that their Gulf rivals receive unfair state aid that allows them to add flights to the U.S. at a rate that outstrips demand. The U.S. airlines have asked the federal government to block Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Air from adding any new flights to the United States. The Gulf airlines have vigorously denied those allegations, responding that customers are simply choosing their high-end service for connections from North America to far-flung destinations in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
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Emirates' ad appears to be the latest salvo in the back-and-forth between the sides, but it also continues a trend of luring high-profile celebrities as brand ambassadors. Emirates' United Arab Emirates rival Etihad, for example, has already signed actress Nicole Kidman as its brand ambassador. And Australian carrier Qantas – which has a deep partnership with Emirates – has recently brought on actor Hugh Jackman as its own brand ambassador.
News of Aniston's tie-up with Emirates surfaced this past August, with the New York Post citing sources at the time in reporting that the deal was worth about $5 million.
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Boutros Boutros, Emirates divisional SVP for corporate communications, talked about the new ad to The National newspaper of Dubai.
"In a departure from the usual airline industry ads, we chose to take a humorous approach to showcase the amazing products we offer on board," Bourtros tells the National. "We couldn't think of anyone better suited for the role than Jennifer Aniston and we wrote the script with her in mind.