Saturday, February 11th, 2012
Firewall was to be a huge Warner Brothers hit. From the catchy tagline ‘They will make him steal, but he will make them pay’ to the high-priced leading man (Harrison Ford); everything was in place including a massive product placement deal with Chrysler.
Two weeks later and only 38 million at the box office, it was all over for Firewall and an obvious miscalculation by Chrysler.
Here was the headline in Autoweek:
“A Ford and a Chrysler hunt the bad guys in the new movie thriller Firewall. The Ford is actor Harrison Ford. The Chrysler is a 300C.”
The integration deal included:
1. Prominent product placement/integration of the Chrysler 300C
2. Firewall footage/content appearing in Chrysler ads.
3. Print and Internet ads including key art from the film
For those who did not see the film (which is many), Ford plays a computer security specialist for a bank. With his family held for ransom, he is commanded to loot his own business for millions in order to ensure his wife and children’s safety.
And of course .. at the end of the day .. Ford fixes everything. I am not going to ruin the plot here as you can either see the film on DVD or watch it on HBO (it is running this week).
From a novice perspective, Chrysler got a killer deal. From the moment the film begins, all you see is their car. Ford commutes to work in his 300C. His wife (played by Virginia Madsen) even drives a Chrysler Pacifica.
Chrysler got what every brand wants … their star vehicle being driven by a major star and being seen over and over again.
But is that what product placement is all about?
Not at all.
Just think Reese’s Pieces. Reese’s Pieces were not on screen for a long time in ET, but they showed up at a major emotional point in the film. More importantly … it was a positive integration.
In Firewall, Ford eventually saves his family and a vehicle does come to the rescue .. but it’s not a 300C. It’s his assistant’s car. Not a new car, but an old junker they have trouble starting. The car could be a Chrysler, but it’s difficult to tell.
The moral of this deal is never leave before the climax. Even if it means your car is destroyed on film, never miss out on the rescue.
Watch the trailer below and you will see the green junker as it stars in the climax.
