Gatorade Goes Back To The Future In Latest Ad Supporting Serena's Slam Run

A new Gatorade ad released around Serena Williams' quest for the calendar year Grand Slam shows her "as a young girl" and features "brilliantly animated moments from Williams' on-court career," according to Gabriel Beltrone of ADWEEK. The spot shows a reporter asking the younger Williams "what player she'd most like to emulate as an adult." Following an "emotional montage of highlights from her subsequent career ... the camera cuts back to the answer she gave as a child." Her response -- herself -- is "bold as well as prescient" knowing how her career has played out. The ad, via TBWA\Chiat\Day, L.A., is part of Gatorade's "Win From Within" campaign, and three more spots "delve deeper into Williams' backstory." The sports drink also has commissioned 21 pieces of art "to represent each of Williams' past wins at the majors" (ADWEEK.com, 9/2).

DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCES: FS1's George Wrighster noted that Maria Sharapova, who withdrew from the U.S. Open with a leg injury, currently "makes more" on endorsements than Williams. However, the 21-time Grand Slam winner is "picking up a lot more endorsements right now." Noting Williams' deals with Chase and other brands, Wrighster said, "I am happy that the scales are starting to balance even more." FS1’s Petros Papadakis said, "Serena Williams is a U.S. tennis player. We’ve got NFL football, we’ve got college football, we’ve got the NBA, we have Major League Baseball. We’ve got a lot of stuff that we are paying attention to in this country. Sharapova is a Russian and she lives in the United States, but she’s a European draw. This sport is really popular in Europe. There’s more money involved, maybe, for somebody like that" ("Fox Sports Live: Countdown," FS1, 9/1).