Ryan Reynolds finds Rob McElhenney stand-in in another famous Rob for new Aviation Gin ad

Reynolds, who co-owns the Welsh soccer club Wrexham AFC with friend and fellow actor Rob McElhenney, says in the 30-second spot: “Wrexham fans have grown used to seeing me and ‘other’ Rob together – but he’s not legally allowed to be in Aviation Gin commercials.”

As such, Reynolds is enlisting the help of another famous Rob. Rob Thomas, frontman of pop-rock band Matchbox Twenty, bewildered, asks: “You want me to sing songs about Aviation Gin?” Reynolds replies wryly: “Yes – and in Welsh.”

Thomas lifts his Aviation Gin cocktail and assures Reynolds that he’ll give it a go. “I already like you better than ‘other’ Rob,” Reynolds replies.

The ad closes on a still shot of a bottle of Aviation accompanied by a quick, peppy, “Un, Dau, Tri, Pedwar,” or “One, Two, Three, Four,” delivered by Thomas, as he presumably tees up to belt his heart out in Welsh.

Reynolds and McElhenney acquired the local club in late 2020. They invested greatly in resources to support the program, funding its return to the English Football League and ultimately helping it to clinch the league championship title for the 2022-2023 season.

The new ad, developed by Reynolds’s production and creative agency Maximum Effort, debuted Tuesday. It will run nationally on FX and Hulu. It was directed by writer and filmmaker Oren Brimer and was produced in partnership with Loon Productions.

It’s the latest in a handful of ads that Aviation Gin has aired on FX and Hulu in recent weeks as part of its partnership with Wrexham AFC. The ads jointly promote the gin and the new season of Welcome to Wrexham, a docuseries on Hulu that traces the club’s glorious comeback under Reynolds’s and McElhenney’s ownership.

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