Cineworld Spotlights Cinema Mishaps Caused by People Who Really ‘Should’ve Gone to Specsavers’

Specsavers has teamed up with Cineworld Cinemas to bring its renowned Should’ve humour to the big screen. In a first of its kind partnership, Specsavers will be the first advertiser to stage a takeover of non-standard media placements that humorously disrupt the cinema environment.

The partnership was brokered by Manning Gottlieb OMD and Digital Cinema Media - the market leader in UK cinema advertising. It includes the takeover of Cineworld’s, ‘turn your phones off’ messaging, a media-first co-branded trailer spot, and a takeover of the DCM opening and closing idents.

DCM’s creative arm, DCM Studios, worked closely with Specsavers’ in-house creative agency to exclusively produce a series of bespoke assets for cinema. All the familiar in-house messages have been re-imagined with Specsavers’ well-known humorous tone of voice showing a series of mishaps caused by people within the cinema environment who really ‘Should’ve gone to Specsavers’.

This includes subverting the famous ‘turn your phones off’ message which is misread as turn 'on'; upside-down projections on the big screen; and silhouettes cast on the screen by a short-sighted cleaner and decorator who have inadvertently ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time, disrupting the trailers as they go about their work.

All elements of the campaign are live from this week, running for a six-month period across a breadth of blockbuster films including Despicable Me 4, Deadpool & Wolverine and BeetleJuice Beetlejuice. The content will run at different times throughout the partnership and across the iconic preshow at Cineworld sites, allowing Specsavers to make maximum impact while utilising cinema’s unique environment to further engage and immerse audiences in the moment.

Specsavers’ marketing services director, Victoria Clarke, said, ‘’We loved the idea of a first of its kind partnership opportunity to take Specsavers to the cinema, and what better way to start a movie than with a good laugh at a great should’ve moment. This activation is part of our ongoing Should’ve Gone to Specsavers campaign, running alongside a broader suite of creative media, which includes TV, radio, OOH, press and digital.”

Richard James, global creative director, Specsavers added, “Specsavers unique brand of humour lends itself perfectly to these new media formats and we hope we can entertain the audience just as much as what follows on the big screen.” 

Chloe Jukes, partnerships account director – MGOMD added, “Should’ve Gone to Specsavers is an iconic campaign that’s been entertaining audiences for over 20 years, so partnering with DCM felt like the perfect opportunity to bring entertaining Should’ve moments to the big screen.”

Jeremy Kolesar, creative director – DCM Studios, added, “We’re thrilled to have worked with Specsavers on this unique campaign. Taking over different touchpoints across the preshow will deliver impact and drive engagement with Specsavers’ target audience, to maximise their wider campaign, while adding some laughter and joy to the whole cinema experience.”