LaMelo Ball Gets His Own Cereal as Hulu's New Superstar 'Sellout'

Hulu stages a faux-ad-within-an-ad starring LaMelo Ball for the latest installment of its popular “Sellouts” campaign. As with past series entries, the spot tweaks influencer marketer while zinging pop culture and touting the Disney-owned streamer’s Hulu + Live TV offering.

Developed with agency Big Family Table, a :30 finds the Charlotte Hornets point guard chilling with friends and munching on LaMelO’s cereal. Naturally, a zippy commercial for the breakfast brand (unavailable IRL) plays on TV.

“LaMelo was totally game to try different things and even adlibbed a couple of moments in the spot,” Michael Schneider, Hulu’s VP of brand, live and licensed marketing, tells Muse. “He and the cast bonded quickly, and it was as if they’d been hanging out and watching commercials in their living room together a long time. There were quite a few takes when LaMelo actually had to eat the cereal, and we were just glad the sugar rush didn’t impact his next game performance.”

Dude looks dope in cartoon form. Cue a Hulu series! Or at the very least, a Rick and Morty guest spot.

“We had fun putting this spot together,” LaMello says in press materials. “Never thought I would have my own cereal—but if anyone knows dreams can come true, it’s me!”

Why not produce some of the stuff for a limited-edition promo? With all those Ball-faced “MarshLaMelOs” floating around in the milk, it’s gotta be good!

The work will run on social and network TV through the NBA playoffs, and once again, Hulu proves itself adept at mashing up media tropes for fab effect.

Disney-owned Hulu has successfully deployed such strategy across “Sellouts” since 2019, and the company took a similar tack in this recent reimagining of its logo for videos reminiscent of old-school TV IDs.

CREDITS

Client Credits:
President Joe Earley
Head of Marketing Scott Donaton
Head of Creative Reid Thompson
VP, Brand, Live & Licensed Marketing Michael Schneider
Director – Brand, Live & Licensed Marketing Rosalind Pressman
Team Lead, Live & Licensed Marketing Chie Kobayashi
Associate Live & Licensed Marketing Manager Jayla Winston

Agency Credits:
Big Family Table

BFT Credits and Titles:
Head of Creative Guto Araki
EVP, Group Account Director Chris Carter
VP, Account Director Lacy Borko
SVP, Executive Integrated Producer Dan Kaplan
Senior Producer Matt Marty
Creative Director Eric Manchester
Creative Director Neal Desai
Account Director Andrew Haumersen
Account Director Natalie Uribe
Account Supervisor Wilhelm Lawrence
SVP, Director of Business Affairs Gabriela Farias
Music Director Chip Herter
Music Supervisor Will Eichler

Live Action Production Company: Hungry Man
Director Dave Laden
Executive Producer Caleb Dewart
Producer Rick Jarjoura
Production Manager Tristan Marciano
Director of Photography Bryan Newman

Editorial: The Den Editorial
Executive Producer Jennifer Mersis
Sr. Editor Christjan Jordan
Assistant Editor James Bird
Senior Producer Carolina Padilla

Post VFX: Tribbo
VFX Creative Director Bibinho Carvalho
VFX Creative Director Rodrigo Pina
VFX Supervisor / Senior Flame Artist Rodrigo Pina
Flame Artist Sergio D’ Piazza
3D Lead Artist Erick Buosi
3D Modeling Alexandre Takeshi
3D Generalist Henrique Freitas and Gabriel Leça
VFX Producer Rafael Flamínio and Tato Carvalho
Conform Fernando Diniz
T.I Manager Lucas Pereira
Account Manager Carolina Barros

Color Company: Company3
Colorist Tom Poole
Color Producer Alexandra Lubrano

Audio Post Company: Lime Studios
Audio Mixer Matt Miller
Audio Assistant Ian Connie
Producer Susie Boyajan
Producer Cassie Underwood

Animation and Illustration: Lobo
Directors Guilherme Marcondes
Executive Producer Luis Ribeiro
Head of Production Clara Morelli / Marcelo Barbosa
Producer Luiza Pagliarini
Post-Production Supervision Leandro Pena
Post-Production Producer Israel Requene

Music Company: Butter
Executive Producer Annikc Mayer
Executive Creative Director Tim Kvasnoksy
Senior Producer Stone Irr
Associate Producer Sonia Ohan
Composer Gregory Jenkins and Andrew Sherman