Welcome to LateNighter’s Spon-Con Watch. In-show advertising is as old as late night itself, but as shows face declining ratings and shrinking budgets, sponsored content (or “brand activations,” as they’re called in marketing circles) have become increasingly common and, at times, more elaborate than ever before. In this recurring feature we keep tabs on how late-night shows are working to wed commerce with comedy.
Jimmy Kimmel is back on Jimmy Kimmel Live! this week—and so is one of the brands helping to foot the show’s bills.
Just two weeks after JKL featured a pre-taped sponsored segment promoting Culligan water filters, the brand returned—this time with an in-studio segment. Wednesday’s in-show ad coincided with Kimmel’s second night back from his two-month summer hiatus.
In a standalone segment at his desk between interviews, Kimmel set the scene by declaring water “the most important ingredient for any talk show.” As he began pouring from a pitcher into his mug, his secirity guard sidekick Guillermo Rodriguez sprinted over in exaggerated slow-motion to stop him.
Rodriguez’s dramatic intervention ended with a smashed mug and a warning: “Just because water looks, tastes, and smells fine doesn’t mean it is.” That line tied back to the show’s last Culligan spot, where Rodriguez learned the same lesson from pint-sized “water experts” Emmy and Chloe.
Rodriguez then handed things off to Culligan’s Head of Science, Dr. Eric Roy, who detailed the risks of unfiltered water.
“That’s gross! I will never drink water again,” Kimmel joked in response.
Dr. Roy quickly reassured him, introducing a Culligan filter pitcher as the solution.
Announcer Lou Wilson wrapped things up by reading the sponsor’s copy while Rodriguez and Dr. Roy “rewound” their earlier antics in fake slow-motion, leaving Kimmel to continue the show.
