These were the Top 10 Most-Viewed Ads on YouTube this year
A star-studded Amazon advert was top of the charts, with Nike’s controversial campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick at number 4….
YouTube has released a rundown of the 10 most-viewed adverts of 2018, with a star-studded campaign for Amazon’s Alexa coming out on top.
The Alexa Loses Her Voice advert features the company’s chief executive, Jeff Bezos, alongside rapper Cardi B, actor Anthony Hopkins and chef Gordon Ramsay.
Since being aired during January’s Super Bowl it has received more than 50 million views, putting it comfortably ahead of the advert in second place: YouTube’s own promo for its new music service.
That was followed by the controversial Nike campaign featuring American footballer Colin Kaepernick, which even drew a comment from US President Donald Trump.
Here is a look at the 10 most popular ads this year:
1. Alexa Loses Her Voice – Amazon (50.1 million views)
Amazon’s Super Bowl ad received 10 million more views than its nearest rival, and certainly features a big name cast.
2. YouTube Music – YouTube (39.5 million views)
YouTube already has an enormous audience for music on the platform, so it made sense that the company attempted to take on rivals such as Spotify and Apple Music.
3. Real Support Makes Real Heroes – Oppo F7 (31.7 million views)
This advert for the Oppo F7 smartphone features the stars of India’s cricket team imagining themselves as mischievous children.
4. Dream Crazy – Nike (27.3 million views)
Nike’s Dream Crazy advert got enormous publicity in September for featuring Colin Kaepernick, the NFL star turned political activist most famous for “taking the knee” in protest at the unjust treatment of black people by US authorities.
It also features a range of incredible feats by real-life athletes, including a 10-year-old wrestler born with no legs, and a champion boxer who successfully challenged rules preventing her from fighting in a hijab.
5. Safety video with the Lego Movie Characters – Turkish Airlines (25.2 million views)
After the success of both the Lego Movie and its Lego Batman spin-off, Turkish Airlines had a big win of its own with a safety video featuring the stars of the films.
6. Who Wouldn’t – Groupon (25.5 million views)
Groupon recruited actor and comedian Tiffany Haddish for its Super Bowl advert this year. In truth, it’s a pretty blunt instrument – but who doesn’t love a bit of ball-in-the-groin slapstick?
7. Moving On – Samsung Galaxy (17.5 million views)
Samsung upped the stakes in its long-running smartphone war with Apple with a light-hearted ad that urged people to ‘upgrade’ from the iPhone by switching to the Galaxy.
8. HomePod – Apple (16.3 million views)
Apple spared no expense with its advert for its rival to Amazon’s Echo, with a sleek four-minute video directed by Spike Jonze and featuring a dancing FKA Twigs in a shape-shifting apartment.
9. Heart of a Lio – Gatorade (13.7 million views)
Sports energy drink company Gatorade created a dramatic CGI ad campaign ahead of the World Cup based on the back story of Lionel Messi. The tournament may not have gone his way, but the video still secured a huge audience online.
10. Rescue Blue the Dinosaur – Lego Jurassic World (10.8 million)
Another showing for Lego, this time for the company’s own interactive adventure, which allows viewers to pick the escape route for Owen as he’s chased by rampaging dinosaurs.
