True Hollywood heavyweights are worth their marketing gold.

Case in point this week is the blogsphere all the buzz about Julia Roberts and her USD$1.8 million payday for a 45 second Italian coffee commercial where she does not say a word.

Someone pointed out that this is USD$40,000 a second, and for much of the commercial she isn't even in the shot.
So is it worth it for the Italian makers of Lavazza "A Modo Mio" Coffee (or coffee machines - haven't worked that one out)?

One would have to say a resounding yes.

They have had so much global exposure over the past week that a mere $1.8 million is a drop in the bucket compared to the vast amount of editorial space they could not have bought even if they wished.

The youtube clip is the commercial as it aired on television one presumes - it has gone viral with nearly 200,000 hits since it was posted on the 28th November, 5 days ago. The momentum is really picking up though as the bloggers get onboard. Since picking up the story and getting around to writing this post after lunch the hit count went up 25,000.

I guess it really is a reflection on the cult of celebrity that we as a collective society have created, that situations like this occur. These super-celebrities like Julia Roberts no longer even need to say anything to endorse it, their mere presence is enough.
Infact surprisingly the clips of this commercial have begun to disappear from Youtube due to "Copyright Violations" so apologies if the video is no longer available. This is now the 3rd time I have reposted this video. Given the exposure the youtube videos have given the brand, one has to wonder why the company would withdraw the ability to view the ad. One would think that even the critical publicity would help their brand presence regardless, and surely must have been one of the considerations when producing such a commercial in the first place.

My how the times have changed. What is it with these celeb's and their coffee???

and the second in the series. He does go on abit. Cant be bothered looking for any more.