Marilyn Monroe, Grace Kelly, and Marlene Dietrich starred in a Dior ad this fall, air-kissing Charlize Theron and cooing over J’Adore perfume. It’s not the first time VIPs have been Pet Sematary‘d to sell stuff, but some resurrections are more off-putting than others. Here’s how a few celebri-zombie shills stack up.
- Fred Astaire (1997)
Astaire dances with a Dirt Devil in a scene CGI’d from the 1951 film Royal Wedding. Verdict: Carpet cleaning as spiritual transportation is implausible, but who cares—it’s still a great number to watch. - Orville Redenbacher (2007)
The bow-tied icon makes a perplexing connection between microwave popcorn and an MP3 player. Verdict: Poor guy looks like a ghost in a rubber mask. Even the other actors look scared. - Gene Kelly (2010)
In a commercial for VW, Kelly and Donald O’Connor do their Sitting Dance in the oh-so-roomy backseat of a Jetta. Verdict: Cute, snappy, and no ghoulish forced interactions with living persons. - Lady Di (2011)
The princess gets digitally aged and used to illustrate Newsweek’s “Diana at 50? story.
Verdict: If there is an uncanny valley of dubious taste, this stunt slides all the way to the bottom.