#PRWIN OR PRFAIL: Is There Such a Thing as Too Much Jeff Goldblum?

It was a shot in the film Jurassic Park that lasted about three whole seconds. Dr. Ian Malcolm a.k.a. Jeff Goldblum, after a T-Rex tries to have him for lunch, recovers from the attack, reclining with his shirt undone, looking…well, depends on who you ask.  

In a PR move meant to promote the television subscription service NOW TV, its agency Fever PR hit upon an idea after discovering the service’s summer content promotion event coincided with the movie’s 25th anniversary. Sure, dinosaurs may have been the real stars, but what would be even more eye-catching? 

And they hit upon an idea: 

T-Rex + Jeff Goldblum = Dinosaur-sized Jeff Goldblum statue! 

And off they went. 

Using the image of a lounging Jeff (btw, already a meme), the team constructed a supersize sculpture that would have intimidated even his ravenous saurian nemesis.1 

The large likeness, now dubbed “Jurassic Jeff”, went to go on display in London’s Potters Fields by Tower Bridge and into the full view of the public.2 (That’s gotta grab eyeballs!) 

Now, say what you will about Jeff Goldblum (love him or hate him) Jurassic Jeff certainly left impressions on Londoners and tourists alike, DISRUPTING what would have been just another around town for most passersby. 

It gets people to stop, take photos, and probably talk about Jeff Goldblum. 

But then again, three seconds of film from a movie that debuted a quarter of a century ago ain’t exactly the most memorable thing they could have done with a movie that features frikkin’ dinosaurs as the main attraction…but I digress. 

More important: Did people get the joke? Did onlookers they see the connections? Remember, this was referencing a newly added film to a streaming service. Well, the press got to work. The links may have been tenuous, but the ensuing media attention NOW TV got via Jurassic Jeff was tremendous for the streaming service. I give them bravery points for being bold and going in an original direction that worked. (Other than the obvious dinosaurs, duh!) 

But man, I really would’ve liked to see a T-Rex sculpture (and have it eating Jeff, ha!). 

Well, I guess there’s always the 30th anniversary… 

There’s lots of ways to go about boosting your ROI that don’t require Jeff Goldblum (or dinosaurs for that matter) that work in the short-term. 

Sure, stunts like these can boost ROI temporarily, but what you really want to do is build third-party credibility. That is what creates trust and confidence among your audience so they will do business with you again and again. In other words, sustainable, long-term ROI. 

JOTO PR Disruptors’ Anti-PR experts know how to do just that. | 888-919-4034 

 Ciao for now,

Karla Jo Helms, Chief Evangelist and Anti-PR Strategist

Sources: 

1. Lepitak, Stephen, “Now TV created a giant statue of Jeff Goldblum”,TheDrum.co, www.thedrum.com/news/2020/08/06/award-winning-stories-why-now-tv-created-giant-statue-jeff-goldblum, August 6, 2020 
2. Mountstevens, Pete, “A giant statue of Jeff Goldblum next to Tower Bridge celebrates 25 years of Jurassic Park”, CreativeEnvironment.co,www.creativemoment.co/a-giant-statue-of-jeff-goldblum-next-to-londons-tower-bridge-celebrates-25-years-of-jurassic-park, August 16, 2018