Pepsi has officially kicked off the countdown to Super Bowl LX with a teaser that leans heavily into one of the most iconic chapters of its advertising history. Revealed during the NFL Conference Championships, the short film introduces a surprising new contender to the legendary blind taste test: a towering, cola-loving polar bear, ready to put his palate on the line.
The teaser sets the scene with deliberate simplicity. No labels. No branding. Just two anonymous cups and a single question: which cola truly wins on taste alone? It is a direct callback to The Pepsi Challenge, the famous experiment first launched in 1975 and revived in 2025, which asked consumers to choose between colas without knowing which brand they were drinking.
By placing a polar bear at the center of the ritual, Pepsi injects humor and spectacle into a format built on neutrality. The character steps up to the table, poised to confront a debate that has shaped cola culture for decades. The message is clear: strip everything back, and let taste speak.
A teaser campaign built on clues
This reveal follows a first wave of cryptic content shared earlier this month, featuring Pepsi Zero Sugar and a snowy paw print accompanied by the line “big game. big choice.” Together, the clues form the opening chapter of a multi-step campaign designed to build anticipation all the way to Super Bowl Sunday.
According to the brand, new hints and social-first content will continue to drop in the coming days, gradually expanding the story before culminating in the full Super Bowl LX commercial.
Taika Waititi behind the camera
The final spot will be directed by Academy Award–winning filmmaker Taika Waititi, a choice that signals Pepsi’s ambition to blend cinematic storytelling with mass-appeal entertainment. Known for his distinctive tone, balancing irreverence with emotional warmth, Waititi is expected to bring a playful, high-impact style to the brand’s biggest media moment of the year.
The campaign is produced by The PepsiCo Content Studio in collaboration with BBDO, and is positioned as an integrated effort spanning film, social media and broader brand activations.
Betting on heritage to fuel modern buzz
By returning to The Pepsi Challenge, Pepsi is not simply revisiting a nostalgic idea. It is reasserting a long-standing brand claim in a media environment dominated by remix culture, short-form content and community-driven debate. The blind test format offers a familiar structure, while the polar bear character and high-profile director provide fresh hooks for a new generation of viewers.
As Super Bowl LX approaches, Pepsi’s strategy appears rooted in a simple tension: a global stage, a playful character and a question that has never really gone away. When everything else is stripped out, which cola do you choose?
