Social media users say they were duped by the commercial despite not even having the Tubi app downloaded on their TV.
Philip Lewis/Twitter
Tubi aired a cheeky prank commercial during Super Bowl LVII on Sunday that many are still discussing.
The ad made viewers think the game was back, only to be interrupted by a switch to the Tubi app.
Social media users are still cracking jokes and making serious points about reactions to the ad.
The Super Bowl has long been synonymous with multimillion-dollar advertising spends, and Tubi’s investment this year seems to be paying off.
Twitter and TikTok users are still talking about the Fox-owned streaming service’s Super Bowl commercial days after the big game aired, after many say it successfully tricked them into thinking someone was controlling their TV.
The commercial features two commentators speaking about the game, when the screen is suddenly interrupted by a channel switch to the Tubi app. Many viewers took to social media to share their reactions to the sneaky commercial, and haven’t stopped talking about it since.
—philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) February 13, 2023
Viewers were left scrambling for their remotes and blaming each other for the abrupt change, and those moments were caught on camera for some while others joked about it afterwards.
“We were all yelling to change it back when we don’t even have tubi,” one TikToker commented.
“MY DAD WAS RAGING,” another wrote.
Although most found the prank lighthearted and humorous, others got seriously upset about possibly missing seconds of the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles game. In a now-deleted Reddit post, one user alleged she broke up with her boyfriend after the commercial caused him to throw a fit.
“My boyfriend thought I was the one changing the channel and began screaming at me violently, calling me things I don’t even want to write down,” the post read.
While the validity of the post remains unclear, it was screenshotted and shared by several others on social media who discussed violent and problematic reactions to the short ad.
“The way that tubi commercial caused so many issues,” one Twitter user wrote on Wednesday. “Like wym people were throwing drinks and hitting ppl over a commercial omg.”
Tubi did not immediately respond to Insider’s request to comment on the responses to the ad.