In a Super Bowl commercial with GM, Netflix is promoting everyone's favorite dystopian survival drama Squid Game.
In a 10 second clip featuring Will Ferrell, the streamer teased the spot on Thursday. “Is there a Mrs. Circle?” Ferrell asks one of the show's masked Pink Soldiers from the backseat of a GM electric vehicle.
The commercial is part of a joint 'EVs On Screen' campaign between GM and Netflix, in which the streamer pledges to increase the use of electric vehicles in relevant Netflix shows and films.
"Entertainment has an enormous impact on culture. We want to make electric vehicles popular on streaming, small, and silver screens to foster an EV culture," said GM Global CEO Marketing Officer Deborah Wahl in a press release. "Netflix is a great partner because of its compelling storytelling, dedication to sustainability, and track record of generating conversations that shape cultural trends."
Netflix has decided to pursue longer-term video games. However, the spot was canceled just weeks after bad press due to reports of injuries on the set of the reality spinoff, Squid Game: The Challenge.
The Sun reported that contestants suffered in subzero temperatures during a game of "Red Light, Green Light" in an old aircraft hangar last month, and that one even left on a stretcher.
"Even if hypothermia kicked in, people were willing to stay as long as possible because a lot of money was on the line. Too many were determined not to move so they stood there for far too long," wrote the publication. "There were people arriving thinking they would be millionaires, but they left in tears."
Netflix later retaliates against the allegations, claiming that less than five players needed medical treatment, and that one accident occurred when a contestant hit a wall and injured their shoulder. Producers have vehemently denied that anyone was taken away.
“We care deeply about the safety and health of our cast and crew, and have invested in all the appropriate safety measures,” according to a spokesperson for Netflix later told Variety. “While it was very cold on set — and participants were prepared for that — any claims of serious injury are false.”