Under Armour Partners With 20th Century For Cross-Promotion Around "The Martian"

Under Armour "has long worked strategically with Hollywood to boost its profile," and now the company has partnered with 20th Century Fox for an "unusually detailed prerelease cross-promotion" around the upcoming movie "The Martian," according to Jeff Barker of the Baltimore SUN. UA's "product integration credits" date to '99 with "Any Given Sunday," and since include "Friday Night Lights" ('04), "The Blind Side" ('09) and "The Dark Knight Rises" ('12), among others. Like its player sponsorship deals, UA "typically bets on winners -- this year's Avengers installment was the No. 6-grossing movie of all time." The early football movies "were naturally connected to the brand's roots as a compression T-shirt maker," but the latest promotion "stretches product integration beyond traditional boundaries." For "The Martian," 3AM -- an entertainment marketing company working with the film's director Ridley Scott -- "has immersed Under Armour into a back story to promote the movie's upcoming release." Under Armour "not only has its logo featured in the campaign, it is named in the short videos as the 'Official Training Partner of the Ares Program.'" It is "actually a player in the story -- or at least the prestory." UA "is already selling T-shirts with an Ares logo on the front and 'Bring Him Home' on the back." UA VP/Strategic Partnerships & Entertainment Todd Montesano said that the film promotion "represents an 'evolution.'" He added, "We've done a lot of product integration, we've done a lot of partnerships with movie studios. Being integrated into the movie priors is something we haven't done before. I think they saw what we have done maybe with our commercial 'Future Girl.' It's very futuristic, and I think you see that same sort of feel and tone in the video as you do with Matt Damon's." Barker noted it is uncertain whether UA "will have a presence in the film itself" (BALTIMORESUN.com, 9/11).