Ford Motor Co. has tapped a trio of celebrities who own and drive its vehicles to revitalize the “Built Ford Proud” ad campaign, which had been dormant for three years.
The series of ads features actress Sydney Sweeney, big wave surfer Kai Lenny and professional stunt driver Dee Bryant. They center on the stars’ connections to and pride in their vehicles: a restored 1969 Bronco, an F-Series pickup and a number of Mustang sports cars, respectively.
“The campaign springs from a simple notion: Ford drivers do amazing things with their vehicles,” Eric Helin, global executive creative director at Wieden+Kennedy New York, one of five agencies involved in the campaign, said in a statement. “These aren’t isolated examples, or one-off collabs with celebrities, they’re authentic stories,” he said, noting that he hopes the new “Built Ford Proud” work is “just the beginning of telling” Ford owners’ stories.
In addition, there will also be a number of video and merchandise tie-ins with the campaign’s three stars.
With Sweeney, known for her roles in hit series including “Euphoria” and “The White Lotus,” Ford will be debuting a “female-forward workwear collection” that it’s producing in collaboration with Dickies, according to a statement from the company. In support of the campaign, she will also host a series of vehicle maintenance tutorials on her TikTok channel, Syd’s Garage, which boasts 1.5 million followers.
With Bryant, who co-founded the nonprofit Association of Women Drivers and is known as one of the entertainment industry’s only Black female stunt drivers, Ford arranged for her to show off her skills behind the wheel of a 2024 Mustang in a series of social media videos titled “Stuff Only Dee Should Do.”
And with Lenny, who lives on the Hawaiian island of Maui, Ford worked to create a line of surfboards with colorways that match the automaker’s Super Duty trucks. Eight of the custom Ford boards will be donated to Lenny’s charity, the Positively Kai Foundation, which works to inspire youth on Maui to pursue their passions.
