Trending PR Campaigns
Exxon El Niño Satirical Ad
Yellow Dot Studios released a mock Exxon advert voiced by Woody Harrelson, which shifts from sunny family scenes to storms, fires and floods as it satirises Big Oil’s climate messaging. Timed to warnings of a potentially severe El Niño, the video turns a familiar corporate ad format into a pointed climate warning.
Why it worked: It hijacked a familiar oil-company ad format with a celebrity voice and launched on the day El Niño hit, creating timely whiplash.
The lesson: Consider spoofing a well-known industry script with an unexpected narrator and release it the moment a forecasted event lands.
Coverage over time
How this story spread across the media
| Publication | Headline | Date |
|---|---|---|
| rollingstone.com | In Satirical Ad, Exxon Admits to Gaslighting Public on Climate Change | Tuesday 9th July, 2024 |
| deadline.com | Adam McKay & Woody Harrelson Team For Darkly Comic “Exxon El Niño Commercial” | Wednesday 21st October, 2026 |
| avclub.com | Adam McKay enlists Woody Harrelson for darkly satirical Exxon ad | Wednesday 21st October, 2026 |