Watch the Mandarin, Loki, and Sinestro pitch for Jaguar at the SuperBowl

Jaguar North America announced the three renowned actors to appear in “Rendezvous,” its 60-second television advertisement to debut during the second half of Super Bowl XLVIII, and revealed details of its largest-ever brand and product marketing campaign, called “British Villains,” which introduces the Jaguar F-Type Coupe (on sale spring, 2014). “Rendezvous” stars Sir Ben Kingsley, Tom Hiddleston and Mark Strong, and was filmed by Oscar-winning British director, Tom Hooper, in London. It is Jaguar’s first Super Bowl TV advertisement.

“With ‘British Villains,’ Jaguar will present itself on the Super Bowl stage as a challenger to the usual luxury car suspects, with a unique cinematic expression of our modern British style,” said Jeff Curry, Brand Vice President, Jaguar North America. “With the three renowned actors, Sir Ben, Tom and Mark, who have all played memorable film rogues, we have brought together the best of British film to star in a major motion picture caliber campaign that addresses the simple cultural observation that Brits often play the best villains in film. This talent, coupled with the direction of Academy Award-winner director Tom Hooper, enables us to launch our campaign for the F-Type Coupe in a manner that captures the new spirit of the entire brand inspired by our latest sports car.”

“Jaguar is truly a beloved British brand and it’s exciting to help them make some noise as they debut in a beloved American event, the Super Bowl,” said Sir Ben Kingsley. “As for being known for playing the roles of renowned villains, I’ll have to ponder that one – I think I’m flattered?!”

The campaign creative, developed with a cinematic vision, centers around the new “Rendezvous” television commercial. In addition to the 60-second spot to air in the Super Bowl, a 30-second preview of “Rendezvous” will debut online on January 28 and run on high-profile, digital channels throughout February. Jaguar also previewed its Super Bowl spot with “The Setup,” staring Sir Ben Kingsley, during the CBS and FOX NFL Divisional Playoff games, January 11 and 12. At the end of the commercial, viewers were invited to view “The Setup” on the campaign’s dedicated landing page, www.BritishVillains.com, and use the unique hashtag, #GoodToBeBad to engage with the brand throughout the campaign. The original score for “Rendezvous” was composed and conducted by Alexandre Desplat, who worked with Tom Hooper on The King’s Speech and recorded by The London Symphony Orchestra at the iconic Abbey Road studios.

The “British Villains” campaign and its many supporting assets were produced specifically for the launch of the F-TYPE Coupe around the broadcast of the 2014 Super Bowl and builds on the momentum of Jaguar following the successful launch of the F-TYPE convertible and a 41 percent sales increase in 2013.

“2014 will continue a very significant period in the growth of the Jaguar brand, marked by quickly rising sales, and new beautifully designed products coming to market, like the F-TYPE Coupe this year, and in the future, an all-new compact sports sedan,” added Curry. “This is perhaps the brand’s most memorable marketing campaign and deserves to appear in one of the most-watched sporting events, the Super Bowl.”

“British Villains” captures the premise that Brits have long made the best villains in landmark films, combining intelligence with charm, restlessness with calm, and always confident. In the world of pop culture, villains disrupt the status quo and challenge the establishment, while living one step ahead of, and better than, the pack. The campaign asks the question, ‘Have you ever noticed how in Hollywood movies, all the villains are played by Brits?’ It was filmed by Hooper in London in a creative partnership with his Smuggler Films production house.

“This is one of those jobs that can really be a lot of fun, so I was quite happy to oblige when Jaguar asked me to be a part of their first Super Bowl commercial,” said Hooper. “To work with the caliber of great actors we cast in this project is a truly special experience on its own and reflects the cinematic approach that we took in the production with Jaguar.”