Entertainment

The Best and Worst Commercials from Super Bowl 2025

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Super Bowl Sunday is not just the biggest day in football — it’s also the biggest day for brands to show off their most creative, funniest and most outrageous commercials, while millions of viewers are tuned in for the showdown on the field. And while the ads have always been a topic of chatter both at Super Bowl viewing parties and at work the next day, with the advent of social media, the best commercials get major buzz even days before the big game.

Read on for the best advertisements — and a few that got mixed reactions.

Best Throwback: Hellman’s

Meg Ryan told PEOPLE “the timing was right” to revisit one of the most memorable scenes in all of movie history: The faux orgasm at Katz’s Deli from When Harry Met Sally. She and co-star Billy Crystal reunited over a sandwich — made ecstasy-inducing with a squirt of Hellman’s — and a new star to deliver the iconic “I’ll have what she’s having” line.

Best Use of Nostalgia: Instacart

Considering nostalgia is most people’s second language at this point, this spot crammed with favorite grocery mascots over the years (Chester Cheetah! The Kool-Aid Man! The Old Spice guy!) all showing up at your house courtesy of — you guessed it — was designed to hit that sweet spot.

Unlikeliest Pairing: Stella Artois

David Beckham finds out he has a twin in the U.S., the “other David,” and tries to find common ground with him. It looks dire … until he realizes “Dave Beckham” (played by Matt Damon) has a killer kick and likes Stella Artois. Bonus: Stay tuned for the Ben Affleck dig at the end!

Best Use of Flying Facial Hair: Pringles

Adam Brody blows a siren call into a Pringles can … and famous mustaches, from Nick Offerman’s to Andy Reid’s, fly off their owner’s faces and carry cans of Pringles to heed the call. Weird, but it works.

Similar Execution, Still Funny: Little Caesar’s

Little Caesar’s cheesy puffs delight Eugene Levy so much, his famous eyebrows get raised right off his head and go on a grand tour — ending up as a mustache on a baby, kings to awed caterpillars and even alighting on daughter Sarah’s hand before returning to his face. Possibly too close to comfort to Pringles’, but it aired first and earned a laugh.

Happiest to Be Mad: Ritz

Aubrey Plaza, Michael Shannon and a rule-breaking Bad Bunny assemble in a room full of salty people, with Plaza and Shannon determined to be even saltier than the crackers. Bad Bunny starts out smiling, but quickly joins the poker faced club so he can stay and snack on Ritz.

Most FOMO-Inducing: Bud Light

Peyton Manning, Post Malone and Shane Gillis are the neighbors you want at the end of the block, showing up to save an otherwise lame yard party. We only shudder to think of how many people are going to try to launch beers with their leaf blowers this summer.

Best Stand Up-and-Salute: Jeep

Harrison Ford starred in this “rumination on life” directed by Oscar nominee James Mangold, in which he declares that life doesn’t come with an owner’s manual, so each person has to pursue their own life, liberty and happiness. “Freedom is for everybody, but it isn’t free, it’s earned,” he says in the ad, before mediating on what freedom truly means. “This Jeep makes me happy, even though my name is Ford,” he concludes. America!

Most Tear-Jerking: Google Pixel

A heart-tugging look at how parenting a daughter from infancy through college has made a man uniquely qualified for the job to which he’s applying. Even if you’re squeamish at the dystopian humanoid voice coaching the dad through interview talking points, you can’t help but get misty at the Father of the Bride-esque moment when the daughter transforms into her younger self mid-college-drop-off-hug.

We’re Still Crying: Pfizer

Blame the onions in the guacamole for the tear we shed watching this LL Cool J-soundtracked ad from Pfizer, which follows a little boy ringing the bell that indicates a patient is cancer free, then shadowboxing through the streets of adoring fans – before arriving home to his biggest fans, his family, who embrace him while a softer version of “Mama Said Knock You Out” plays – alluding to the pharmaceutical company’s many cancer fighting drugs in the works. Okay, maybe it wasn’t the onions.

Best and Most: Dunkin’

Fans who bought the 2024 sweatsuits from the very popular Ben Affleck Dunkin’ Donuts ad were rewarded when the DunKings returned — bigger and better than ever — for another go at the “best Super Bowl ad” title. Though Tom Brady, Matt Damon and Jennifer Lopez didn’t return, several more Bostonians showed up, including Bill Belichick and his girlfriend Jordon Hudson, Casey Affleck, and, taking “Beantown” very literally, method actor Jeremy Strong. And this time, they cued up a seven-minute epic mini-movie following the Dunkings’ attempt to take the title in a coffee-inspired boy band showdown.

Best Girls-in-Sports Showdown: Nike and the NFL

It’s been a record-breaking year for women’s sports — and women’s sports still has a long way to go. These pump-’em-up ads from Nike and the NFL were a nice way to pay tribute to both facts.

Best Story for the Grandkids: Doritos

This Doritos alien abduction spot got a laugh from us — and it was made even better when we realized it was the winner of the brand’s challenge for amateurs to “Crash the Super Bowl” by submitting their own ads and letting viewers vote on the winner. Dylan Bradshaw and Nate Norell were the fan favorites, netting $1 million and a trip to the Super Bowl (plus bragging rights for life).

Most Mysterious: Yahoo

If you caught Yahoo’s local, 15-second spot, did you try to email Bill Murray? And if so, are you down the rabbit hole of what happens next?

Most Divisive: Mountain Dew

This Mountain Dew ad, which saw Seal turned into an actual seal singing about a “kiss from a lime”, alarmed many PEOPLE staffers on first viewing. But on Sunday night, several announced that it had won them over.

Most Fever Dream-Ish: Coffee Mate

We can imagine the pitch — Coffee Mate makes your tongue so happy, it wants to sing! — and we’re always happy when Shania Twain is getting paid. But the execution will haunt us.

Most ‘Oh Dear God!’: Tubi

We’re very grateful to Tubi for letting us watch the Super Bowl for free this year. We’re less grateful for this nightmare-inducing spot that features flesh hats for 60 seconds. (Although again, one editor said it was growing on her, so maybe there were no losers tonight?)

Entertainment

Heather Graham makes waves in Italy and more star snaps

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Isla Fisher braves a rainy day in NYC, Dua Lipa snaps a selfie and more snaps…

Entertainment

Hayden Panettiere, ‘Nashville’ and ‘Heroes’ actress, dead at 36

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Hayden Panettiere, an actress best known for her starring roles in “Nashville” and “Heroes,” has died. She was 36.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” her father, Skip Panettiere, said in a statement to ABC News.

“She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her — and to the millions who watched her onscreen.”

Her father concluded the statement by asking for privacy “as our family takes time to process this unimaginable loss.”

A cause of death has yet to be revealed. Page Six has reached out to reps for Panettiere for comment.

Panettiere was born on Aug. 21, 1989, in Palisades, New York, to parents Skip and Lesley Vogel. Her younger brother, Jansen, unexpectedly died in 2023 at the age of 28.

She gave birth to her only child, daughter Kaya, with boxing champ Wladimir Klitschko in 2014.

Panettiere got her start in Hollywood as a child star. She starred in commercials before landing gigs on soap operas like “One Life to Live” in 1994 and “Guiding Light” in 1996.

While she’s best known for portraying Claire Bennet on “Heroes” and Juliette Barnes on “Nashville,” she’s also starred in projects like “Remember the Titans,” “Raising Helen,” “Ice Princess,” “Scream 4” and the TV movie “Amanda Knox.”

Before her death, the actress had been vocal about her struggles with postpartum depression, substance abuse and being in the spotlight since she was a kid. She most recently opened up about her battles in her memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” which was released in May.

“I had my first identity crisis. I remember exactly where I was, standing in my bedroom at 12 years old,” she recalled during a panel discussion for the book Los Angeles at the time, noting that she spent much of her childhood either “playing characters” or sitting in audition rooms.

“It’s the most brutal experience, like the stark cold room, and just this row of people judging you.”

Panettiere admitted that she was “wasn’t checking in” with herself while going through some “dark” and “ugly” experiences over the years.

“I’m a perfectionist. Like, I’ve been groomed. I’m so militant because, I’ve been groomed from such a young age that you don’t ask questions,” she shared.

“Someone says, ‘You stand on the mark, you get your lines right, I ask you to throw yourself in a building in the middle of the night in the pouring rain’ over and over and over again. These crazy stunts. You’re like, ‘Cool, yeah, sure. No problem’ … I just got to an age where I was just so emotional and so upset all the time that I was trying anything to make it OK.”

Panettiere told the crowd that she remembered wondering at the time, “I’m playing all these characters and I feel like they’re genuine and they’re a part of me, but who am I outside of this? What is my identity?”

Just a few months later, in July, Page Six reported that Panettiere canceled her appearance at Creep I.E. Con at the last minute due to an emergency.

“Hayden Panettiere has an emergency and will not be able to attend this weekend. We are looking forward to her appearing at an upcoming show,” the convention shared via Instagram at the time.

A rep for Panettiere told Page Six that the cancellation was “due to a private family matter.”

Story developing…

Entertainment

Nick Reiner blocked from $1.5M trust due to ‘slayer statute’: docs

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Nick Reiner’s request to gain access to his $1.5 million trust to cover his court fees and commissary items has been blocked by trustees.

The financial steward claimed in court docs filed this week that California’s “slayer statute” prevents Nick — who has been charged with murdering his parents, Rob and Michele Reiner — from inheriting the money.

Per Justia Law, the statute prevents a “person who feloniously and intentionally kills the decedent” from gaining access to “property, interest, or benefit under a will of the decedent, or a trust created by or for the benefit of the decedent.”

“California has enacted no exception permitting a killer’s inheritance to be used for criminal defense costs,” Lauriann Wright, a lawyer for the professional fiduciary, Jodi Pais Montgomery, wrote in the docs obtained by the New York Times.

Wright also wrote that under the “slayer statute,” Nick’s portion of his trust fund would be transferred to his sister and brother, Romy and Jake Reiner.

She noted that although Nick is presumed innocent pending the murder trial, releasing the funds to him now would be “irreversible.”

In a statement to the Times, Nick’s lawyer, Anita P. Wu, rejected the claim that the law applies.

“The slayer statute requires a determination, not a mere accusation,” she said. “Nick is presumed innocent and has been convicted of nothing.”

In June, Nick, 32, demanded access to his $1.5 million trust fund to help him cover his legal fees as he fights the murder charges.

The “Being Charlie” writer stated in a petition that he was supposed to be paid half of his trust when he turned 30 in 2023 and the other half when he turns 35 in 2028.

Because the trust is “irrevocable,” Nick — who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia — claimed in the petition that the trustee is not sanctioned to withhold funds from a beneficiary, even if they are deemed incompetent.

Rob and Michele were found stabbed to death in their Brentwood, California, home last December. The filmmaker was 78 and the photographer was 70.

The “All in the Family” actor and Michele’s death certificates stated they died within “minutes” of receiving “multiple sharp force injuries” with a “knife, by another.”

Their youngest son, Nick, was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths.

In February, the screenwriter pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Nick is facing a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.

If you or someone you care about is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).