Holiday tentpole 'The Greatest Showman' to unveil grand-scale commercial live during 3-hour musical event 'A Christmas Story Live!'
Fox Broadcasting Company and 20th Century Fox Film are teaming up to present the first-ever live television commercial for a feature film. Holiday tentpole "The Greatest Showman" will debut a live, two-and-a-half minute commercial during the network's upcoming three-hour live musical event, A "Christmas Story Live!", airing Sunday, Dec. 17 (7-10 p.m. ET live/PT tape-delayed), on FOX.
Starring Maya Rudolph, Matthew Broderick, Jane Krakowski, Chris Diamantopoulis, Ana Gasteyer, David Alan Grier, Ken Jeong and newcomer Andy Walken, "A Christmas Story Live!" is inspired by the holiday classic feature "A Christmas Story," and the Tony Award-nominated Broadway production "A Christmas Story: The Musical." Adding to the night's excitement is the first-of-its-kind live theatrical commercial starring "The Greatest Showman" headliners Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Zendaya and Keala Settle, who will perform the movie's original song, "Come Alive."
Directed by "The Greatest Showman" feature film director Michael Gracey, along with Emmy-nominated "Saturday Night Live" and "30 Rock" director Beth McCarthy-Miller, the live trailer will feature a 360-degree shoot and more than 150 dancers. Filming will take place adjacent to the "A Christmas Story Live!" stages at the historic Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank.
The partnership between "The Greatest Showman" and "A Christmas Story Live!" kicks off this week with co-promoted movie trailers and TV promos tagging each project, on-air, online and in theaters, and culminates with the groundbreaking live commercial.
"As we continue to drive innovation in both our programming and ad products, we are thrilled to be working in partnership with our sister film studio in this exciting live holiday event," said Suzanne Sullivan, executive vice president of entertainment ad sales for Fox Networks Group. "We can't wait to watch as Hugh, Zac, Zendaya and Keala make history and unwrap the first-ever live theatrical commercial on FOX's air."
"We are creating what we expect will be a memorable performance providing energy and excitement to viewers that drives them to see 'The Greatest Showman,' " said Michelle Marks, senior vice president, marketing and global media promotions for 20th Century Fox Film. "This first-ever live commercial for a feature film is one that P.T. Barnum would be proud of, and one that I hope paves the way for future titles."
