Michael K. Williams, well known for his powerful role as Omar Little in The Wire is featured playing four roles in a wonderfully brilliant long-form ad for The Atlantic, created by Wieden + Kennedy New York.
The ad centers around the actor pondering through four characters whether Hollywood typecasted his career or whether it’s his own path that got him where he is.
“You think I’m being typecast?” he asks his other self. Who answers, “I don’t know. Think this cat is typecast?”
Two other versions of William’s join in a compelling interplay. Check it out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=170&v=STkh15nZ1uA
The connection with venerable Atlantic magazine is the media’s self-reflection in the age of Trump.
“The central premise of the campaign is that The Atlantic has a 160-year tradition of questioning conventional answers,” said The Atlantic’s president, Bob Cohn. “We scrutinize our own [and others’] opinions; we challenge the received wisdom; we’re open to ideas that mess with our assumptions. We do all this as part of our commitment to bring clarity and original thinking to the most consequential issues of the day.”
CREDITS
Client: The Atlantic
Agency: Wieden + Kennedy New York
Executive Creative Director: Karl Lieberman
Creative Directors: Jaclyn Crowley, Al Merry
Copywriter: Brock Kirby
Head of Integrated Production: Nick Setounski
Executive Producer: Alison Hill
Head of Planning: Dan Hill
Brand Strategist: Brian Ritter
Social Director: Jessica Breslin
Junior Social Strategist: Carlos Tovar
Management Supervisor: Samantha Wagner
Media Director: David Stopforth
Media Strategist: Sophie Novick
Project Manager: Danielle Rounds
Business Affairs Managers: Sara Jagielski, Patrick O’Donoghue, Lindsey Timko
Director of PR & Publishing: Teressa Iezzi
Production Company: O Positive
Director: David Shane
Director of Photography: Maryse Alberti
Partner/Executive Producer: Ralph Laucella
Line Producer: Marc Grill
Editorial Company: Mackcut
Editor: Gavin Cutler
Assistant Editor: Pamela Petruski
Executive Producer: Gina Pagano
VFX Company: The Mill
Executive Producer: Verity Grantham
Producer: Clairellen Wallin
Coordinator: Kate Aspell
Shoot Supervisor: Antoine Douadi
2D Lead Artist: Antoine Douaid
Telecine Company: The Mill
Color Producer: Natalie Westerfield
Color Coordinator: Elizabeth Nagle
Colorist: Josh Bohoskey
Color Assist: Daniel Moisoff, Nate Seymour, Amanda Bernhardt, Zack Wilpon
