Carvana Finds Dax & Kristen in Fine, Funny Form

Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard keep pumping the cuteness pedal, and we all go along for the ride.

At this point, they’ve entered a commercial comfort zone that provides some smiles and extra coverage for virtually any brand. Their work never transcends, but it delivers a vibe that’s witty and self-aware—sweet, but never mawkish—while sticking safely to the middle of the road.

Which brings us to the Hollywood power couple’s turn for Carvana. It’s no spoiler to say they hype the online car seller’s new Value Tracker for all they’re worth:

Hooold on! Kristen seems tense. Guess her calmer self isn’t around thee days. And really, all that activity for an extra $17K or so? Doubt it. These folks throw $600 at pillows and sheets they’ll only use for one night!

Kidding aside, the ad really pops, with sharp performances and crisp direction from DOMO’s Jonathan Klein.

“Our approach focused on intimate, relatable and clever humor,” Klein says. “But it was really about family. Family is who we buy and sell our cars for and who we spend most of our time in cars with. Funny within family tends to be inside jokes, rich territory for comedy. That insight gave these films an extra gear.”

It works, of course, thanks to D&K’s charm, relatability and high recognition factor.

“Their natural chemistry made the spots feel refreshingly authentic and just outright funnier,” say Matty Conrad, Carvana’s association director of production.