Due in large part to the thing where it’s hard to hide something like Hollywood movie star Ben Affleck randomly working a Dunkin’ drive-thru in Medford, Massachusetts, The Accountant star’s Super Bowl spot for his beloved coffee and donut chain wasn’t a total surprise. (It also didn’t help that Jennifer Lopez was on hand, which really gave away the game.)
However, the gag was a surprise to the unsuspecting Dunkin’ customers who pulled around to the window to see the on-again/off-again Batman handling their order. While the Super Bowl spot captured some of that fun, commercial time during the big game is crazy expensive, so a lot of the interactions were left on the cutting room floor. Until now.
Following the spot, Dunkin’ uploaded outtakes from Affleck’s time behind the register, and it’s even better than the actual commercial. The actor clearly had a ball messing with customers and, unlike on a Kevin Smith movie, he was given free rein to improv as he pretended to be out of both coffee and donuts or frantically repeated orders back to customers.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the whole concept was Affleck’s idea because, of course, the man is constantly looking for ways to get inside a Dunkin’ for hours on end. Affleck also knew how the locals would react to the hidden camera idea.
Some used invective-flecked outbursts to describe his “inept” service, he said.
“It’s Boston, after all, so we had some rather coarse and agitated people who were willing to voice their displeasure in a colorful way, and I’m still lobbying to include the most interesting of those in some of the edgiest social spots,” said Mr. Affleck.
As for how much money Dunkin’ lost by letting Affleck have full access to the coffee urns and crullers, well, we do not know as of this writing, but presumably millions. Maybe even billions.
(Via Wall Street Journal)