Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly

Episode Title: Dish Night at the Movies: Marketing Motion Pictures
Date: August 30, 2025
Host: Terry O'Reilly, Apostrophe Podcast Network

Episode Overview

Terry O’Reilly explores the unique and innovative marketing strategies behind some of Hollywood’s most memorable movie launches, both past and present. From the Depression-era “dish night” that saved struggling cinemas to modern-day viral and experiential campaigns for blockbuster films like Avatar: The Way of Water, Top Gun: Maverick, and the low-budget horror hit Smile, O’Reilly takes listeners inside the creative world of film promotion. The central message: trailers alone rarely guarantee box office success—smart, original marketing makes all the difference.

Key Topics & Insights

1. 90 Minutes of Air Conditioning: A Novel Product Launch

[03:08–06:12]

• The Context: Last August’s heatwave in NYC drove New Yorkers to seek relief in air-conditioned spaces.
• The Campaign: Midea, an air conditioner manufacturer, worked with Pereira O’Dell to create a full-length, 90-minute “movie” titled 90 Minutes of Air Conditioning.
  • The “film” consisted solely of a shot of an air conditioner cooling an apartment.
  • Audiences were invited into a Manhattan cinema for free, given popcorn, soda, and a discount on air conditioners.
  • Patrons were encouraged to use their phones, make calls, or chat—air conditioning, not the movie, was the main attraction.
• Impact: Drew crowds, generated significant press, and exemplified a creative product launch aimed at generating buzz ("The draw was the chill, not the content." – Terry O’Reilly [05:40]).

2. Depression-Era Ingenuity: Dish Night at the Movies

[06:28–12:24]

• Historical Background:
  • The switch to “talkies” in the late 1920s brought initial boom, then bust after the Great Depression.
  • Theaters struggled as moviegoing became an unaffordable luxury.
  • Early efforts to lure audiences with more sex and violence were blocked in 1934 by the Hays Code.
• Dish Night Is Born:
  • Dishware companies partnered with theaters to give away plates, cups, or bowls on slowest nights.
  • Slogan: “Collect the entire set!”—encouraged repeat visits.
  • Cost for theaters: 10¢ per dish; huge return by increasing ticket sales.
• Result: “Dish night at the movies saved Hollywood. In a time when weekly attendance had plunged, the dish giveaway brought people back to theaters” (Terry O’Reilly [10:38]).

3. Global Spectacle: Marketing Avatar: The Way of Water

[12:35–13:06]

• Challenges: 13 years since the first Avatar, needed to renew excitement for a new generation.
• Campaign Tactics:
  • Times Square Takeover: 40+ digital billboards ran simultaneous, 360° immersive visuals.
  • Venice Transformation: Canals lit blue and projections created an aquatic Avatar landscape, even forming the film’s signature “A” logo.
  • Alexa Integration: Custom “Avatar” theme for Alexa Echo devices—soundscapes, language lessons, and quizzes; included constant reminders that the movie was “exclusively in theaters soon.”
• Outcome: $2.2 billion gross as of release, 3rd highest-grossing film ever.

“It was the first time Alexa had ever featured a branded theme.” (Terry O’Reilly [11:38])

4. Viral Genius on a Shoestring: The Smile Campaign

[14:46–19:15]

• The Movie: A horror film where “smiling is not a good thing”—intended for streaming, upgraded to theatrical release after strong test audience response.
• Marketing Budget: Tiny; needed press attention, not standard spend.
• Stunts:
  • Paramount hired actors to display maniacal smiles in highly visible locations:
    • Baseball games (right behind home plate on live broadcast)
    • The Today Show (photobombing on live TV)
  • The weirdness sparked social media buzz and massive press coverage.
• Result:
  • Film cost $17 million, grossed over $200 million.
  • “The movie, by the way, smiled all the way to the bank.” (Terry O’Reilly [17:22])

5. Reviving a Classic: Top Gun: Maverick

[19:15–29:00]

• Initial Challenge:
  • 36 years after the original; majority of target demographic (14–39) weren’t alive in 1986.
  • Needed to make the sequel relevant to a new generation.
• Multi-Phase Campaign:
  • Early Teases: Social media hints, posters featuring iconic flight jacket.
  • Comic-Con: Tom Cruise’s surprise appearance to appeal to younger fans.
  • Behind-the-Scenes Features:
    • Focus on real fighter jet stunts, no CGI, actors trained and filmed themselves in cockpits.
    • Revealed actors “really in the fighter jets... you literally see the actors inside the cockpits struggling with the G force.” (Terry O’Reilly [19:35])
  • Pandemic Delay Management:
    • Kept excitement alive over multiple postponements with new trailers, Super Bowl and AFC championships tie-ins, and featurettes on training and call signs.
  • Major Stunts and Partnerships:
    • Premiere on an aircraft carrier, dramatic helicopter entrance by Tom Cruise.
    • Lady Gaga’s theme song and video launch.
    • Cannes Film Festival with F-18 flyover.
    • Porsche and Applebee’s tie-in promotions.
  • Immersive Experiences:
    • Giant fighter pilot helmet displays in cinemas.
    • Focus on state-of-the-art sound and big-screen experience; insisted on a theatrical (not streaming) release.
  • Celebrity Shenanigans:
    • Tom Cruise takes James Corden on a wild fighter jet ride, viewed 30+ million times online.
• Box Office:
  • 95% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
  • First film of 2022 to join the Billion Dollar Club, over $1.4 billion gross, Paramount’s biggest hit ever.
  • Steven Spielberg credited Cruise with “saving the entire theatrical industry.”

  “It didn’t pin its hopes on people loving or even seeing the original movie… Instead, Cruise and Paramount worked incredibly hard to market the movie.” (Terry O’Reilly [28:46])

6. Core Takeaways on Movie Marketing

[29:00–29:52]

• The best marketing campaigns don’t always require huge budgets—creativity counts more.
• New or immersive experiences, novel stunts, and leveraging real cultural habits (e.g., escaping heat, social collecting) drive audiences.
• Even with big names and money, “you still have to work your tail fin off to promote a big budget movie.” (Terry O’Reilly [29:42])
• Sometimes, all it takes is a “smile.”

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On the New York Air Conditioning Campaign:
  “The draw was the chill, not the content.” — Terry O’Reilly [05:40]

• On Dish Night’s Impact:
  “Dish night at the movies saved Hollywood. In a time when weekly attendance had plunged, the dish giveaway brought people back to theaters.” — Terry O’Reilly [10:38]

• On Avatar: The Way of Water Promotion:
  “It was the first time Alexa had ever featured a branded theme.” — Terry O’Reilly [11:38]

• On Smile’s Success:
  “The movie, by the way, smiled all the way to the bank.” — Terry O’Reilly [17:22]

• On Endurance of Movie Marketing:
  “A big budget doesn’t guarantee a big hit, and a small budget almost guarantees it won’t be a hit. Yet as Tom Cruise demonstrated, you still have to work your tail fin off to promote a big budget movie.” — Terry O’Reilly [29:36]

Notable Segment Timestamps

• [03:08] – Midea Air Conditioning “Movie” campaign
• [06:28] – History and origins of Dish Night
• [11:30] – Avatar: The Way of Water global marketing
• [14:46] – Smile and guerrilla “smilers” campaign
• [19:15] – Top Gun: Maverick marketing deep dive
• [25:28] – Tom Cruise & James Corden’s viral flight segment
• [29:00] – Key lessons and core takeaways

Conclusion

Terry O’Reilly demonstrates that extraordinary movie marketing is about memorable, creative ideas—not necessarily big budgets. Whether with clever giveaways in the Great Depression, massive global spectacles, or viral stunts, the ad industry’s most successful campaigns create engagement and anticipation well beyond what trailers can supply. As O’Reilly notes, in show business, “when you don’t have money, a smile can go a long way when you’re under the influence.”