Channing Tatum, newly converted Wrexham AFC fan and star of a Super Bowl commercial that will this weekend propel the Welsh club’s footballers into millions of American homes, has a concern.
“Man, I feel embarrassed,” he tells The Athletic after being asked how it feels to be following in the footsteps of Sir Anthony Hopkins as the star of Stok Cold Brew’s latest collaboration with Wrexham, the EFL club owned by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
“I hope Anthony Hopkins doesn’t see this and go, ‘Really? This is who’s filling my shoes?’”
For those who missed it, two-time Academy Award winner Hopkins took the lead in last year’s inaugural Super Bowl advert from Stok, who since 2023 have sponsored Wrexham’s home stadium.
In a distinct departure from career-defining roles such as Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs or Stevens in The Remains of the Day, the Port Talbot-born actor donned the costume of Wrex the Dragon, the mascot who entertains young fans at every home game. The 60-second film showing Hopkins psyching himself up for the role in the mirror went down a storm.
Hence Stok once again joined forces with Wrexham and Maximum Effort, Reynolds’ agency, to make a commercial that will air on Fox Sports’ Big Game livestream and the NFL app when the Philadelphia Eagles take on the Kansas City Chiefs at Super Bowl LIX this Sunday.
Celebration dances are the central theme of this year’s ad (scroll down to watch it). Magic Mike star Tatum has been brought in by the club’s owners as a choreographer to teach the players how to celebrate goals by throwing a few shapes, fuelled by the sponsor’s coffee drink.
Tatum in action, as Wrexham’s players watch on… (Stok)
To film the advert, Tatum spent a few days in north Wales just before Christmas and joined Reynolds at Wrexham’s 2-2 draw with Cambridge United. “I was able to go and hang out with the guys the night before filming,” he says. “I went to the game and then it was (midfielder) Elliot Lee’s birthday the night after. We all just hung out. Such a good time.
“I was still nervous. I knew I was going to have to make a fool out of myself the next day in front of them. It could have gone one of two ways. They could have been, ‘Who is this dumb American actor, coming in here and doing whatever?’ This is their job. They work hard at what they do. They are having an incredible season. I didn’t know what the vibe was going to be. But they were just so sweet.”
The going rate for a Super Bowl ad can reach $7-8million for 30 seconds of screentime on TV during the game itself and companies go all-out when it comes to big-name appearances. David Beckham, Ben Affleck, Meg Ryan and even superstars like Kermit the Frog will be watched by an audience of up to 200million during breaks in play between the Eagles and the Chiefs.
For Wrexham and sponsor Stok, tapping into that Super Bowl market together is huge. “The Super Bowl is literally the crown jewel, the biggest moment of the year, for our industry,” says Dan Donovan, chief creative officer at Maximum Effort. “One of those rare moments when the world really is watching. Not just the game but the advertising. As I’ve got to know English football these last few years, I understand they have games that dwarf the Super Bowl, as far as viewership.
“But, because of the way the game is played, there’s no ads with the 45-minute halves. So, it’s a very different experience. If folks in the UK have never had the chance to experience the Super Bowl the way Americans do, they’d be surprised because people pay attention to the ads just as much as they do the game.”
Thanks to the success of the Emmy-award winning documentary series Welcome to Wrexham, the League One team’s players are no strangers to the spotlight. Strike duo Paul Mullin and Ollie Palmer even had cameo roles in last summer’s blockbuster film Deadpool & Wolverine, courtesy of co-chairman Reynolds.
Maybe that explains why filming with Tatum in the cramped home dressing room at Wrexham’s historic stadium proved a relatively straightforward affair, even though the crew were given only a small window of 30-45 minutes due to the players then needing to train.
The only blip involved the main star taking a tumble when illustrating a few dance moves using a small table that usually holds the team’s medical supplies and bottles of water on a matchday.
“I face-planted off the table,” laughs Tatum. “I remember getting there (before filming) and they showed me the table. I’m, like, ‘This isn’t a table — how am I supposed to do anything on this thing?’ Sure enough, I fell off. I was, like, ‘Oh my God!’ Everyone was crying with laughter.”
Otherwise, everything went to plan, including the players — and veteran striker Steven Fletcher (pictured top), in particular, when going nose-to-nose with Tatum in one scene — keeping a straight face, even as the American went through a few of his more outlandish moves
“They were actually all pretty incredible at keeping a poker face,” says Tatum. “So good, actually, that I had to ask, ‘You guys still like me, right?’”
Tatum will be watching his daughter at an Irish dance competition on Sunday, but hopes to be able to catch Super Bowl LIX.
“I think her dance, her competition, will be done just as the game is starting,” says the 44-year-old. “So, hopefully, we can go somewhere and catch the game. That’s my plan but who knows how these things will go?”
Providing nothing happens to spike those plans, Tatum will then get the opportunity to see the advert live and relive his visit to north Wales. “I want to come back,” he says of Wrexham. “Literally, dying to come back now I have friends there.”
Tatum packed in plenty during that long weekend in Wales. On the Friday, he joined Reynolds for a meal at local pub, The Fat Boar, before mixing with fans. Saturday morning was spent visiting the city centre. First stop was the ‘Ryan Reynolds Memorial Park’, gifted to the Deadpool star by McElhenney as a birthday prank. Here, the Canadian explained to his fellow A-lister the intention is to turn the area into a community space.
Reynolds and Tatum at the ‘Ryan Reynolds Memorial Park’ in December (Richard Sutcliffe)
The two film stars visited The Turf, the pub next door to Wrexham’s home, and took a short stroll to the high street for a cup of coffee at the Zerno Ukrainian Cafe, which sits opposite the picturesque St Giles’ Parish Church that really caught Tatum’s eye. “What I really liked was taking the walk, where you go past the church,” he says. “I have an amazing picture, with the sun, but it was also misty and rainy. The church is behind. It is such a beautiful city, I really want to go back and explore it more.”
Though sports figures have long been part of the advertising world, it is still very unusual to see a British soccer team — and a third-tier one at that — feature in the Super Bowl weekend. That Wrexham are getting yet more international attention may prompt jealousy, something that Maximum Effort creative director Donovan has been wary of on several visits across the Atlantic since the Welsh club’s Hollywood takeover.
“I hope those folks who are not fans of Wrexham can see the positives,” he adds. “As English football becomes more popular in the United States, it’s good for all the teams. We’re obviously personally invested in Wrexham as a company but I can see how Wrexham and its popularity is not singular. I can see the heat around the league and the sport. It really is having a renaissance in the U.S. which ultimately will be great for English football.”
Regardless of how other fans feel, the expectation is that Wrexham fans will be proud. “I can’t imagine a world where anyone in Wrexham could have believed their club, their town, would have been on display in this manner,” says Brittney Polka, vice-president of ready-to-drink beverages at Danone North America, owner of the Stok brand. “I feel super proud to be able to do that with them. I hope they feel we’ve done them proud.”
As for Sunday, Tatum says he is looking forward to the game, though his football loyalties on that side of the pond lie in the college game and, specifically, the University of Alabama. “I don’t really (have an NFL team), to be honest,” he says. “I grew up in Tampa and at the time, the Buccs (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, owned by Manchester United’s Glazer family) were one of the worst teams in the NFL. I liked them but I couldn’t really call them my team.
“My dad was from New Orleans and he claimed the Saints. So, I’m kind of a Buccs/Saints fan in the NFL. But, more than anything, I’m Roll Tide, Alabama.”
Come the Super Bowl, however, Tatum admits his friendship with Wrexham co-owner McElhenney — a lifelong Eagles fan after being raised in Philadelphia — means he will have more than a passing interest in who triumphs.
“This is massive for Rob,” he says. “Huge. I’m so excited for him.”
(Top photo: Maximum Effort)
