Key Takeaways:

  • Samsung and Liquid I.V. are launching marketing campaigns around "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," set in the superhero blockbuster's New York scenes, with press releases issued separately by both companies.
  • Liquid I.V., as the film's exclusive functional hydration partner, features character Ned Leeds (played by Jacob Batalon) staying cool in extreme heat. This is Liquid I.V.'s largest entertainment collaboration to date, encompassing co-branded products, in-film integration, and upcoming fan experiences.
  • Samsung builds on its Spidey Tracker web experience launched in June with new creative content featuring Batalon and Spider-Man himself—who is frustrated by shattered phones and ultimately discovers that the foldable Galaxy phone is the right choice.

Deep Dive:

Samsung and Liquid I.V. are capitalizing on the buzz around the next installment of Marvel and Sony Pictures' Spider-Man franchise with two separate product-focused campaigns that nod to the superhero's tech-savvy appeal. "Brand New Day" is set for a July 31 North American release, with a projected U.S. opening weekend of $180–190 million, according to Deadline, positioning it as a major 2026 summer blockbuster.

Both campaigns feature Ned, the film's nerdy sidekick, and heavily utilize the movie's New York narrative backdrop. Spider-Man appears wordlessly in both ads: fiddling with devices in the Samsung spot and rescuing an oblivious Ned from danger in the Liquid I.V. ad.

Samsung's ad, directed by Kasra Farahani, who has worked on Marvel art design, is set partly in Peter Parker's apartment and intercuts film footage. The ad opens with Ned checking the Spidey Tracker—a real-world mobile experience developed by Samsung—as Spider-Man swings by in the background before heading home to rest. In the apartment, Spider-Man is frustrated by a pile of phones shattered by his acrobatics, then assembles a new foldable Galaxy phone, which a virtual assistant describes as "a flip phone with smart AI, built for mobile communication." Samsung says it will continue the storyline at its Galaxy Unpacked event on July 22.

The new film also marks the latest and largest entertainment collaboration for Unilever-owned Liquid I.V., which recently partnered with Amazon Prime Video's hit series "Off Campus."

In the Spider-Man-themed ad titled "Your Friendly Neighborhood Hydration Brand," Ned strolls down the street, oblivious to danger with headphones on, while Spider-Man repeatedly saves him—including fending off two masked thugs and deflecting falling construction tools. Overheated, Ned eventually walks into a corner store, recites Liquid I.V.'s health benefits, then drinks a bottle of water with the powder mix and declares he's "ready for a brand new day."

The campaign supports two limited-edition co-branded products: Hydration Multiplier Arctic Raspberry and the sugar-free Raspberry Lemonade. The ad was created by agency Blue Raven with director Alen Petkovic. It launches as New York experiences a heat wave and will air across TV, digital, and social channels.

Brands' interest in product and content integration with popular IP is creating bigger waves in the marketing services sector. M+C Saatchi North America earlier this month announced the launch of a dedicated entertainment marketing practice, led by a former WME executive.