Boss One Bodywea 2025 Ad Campaign

Review of Boss One Bodywear 2025 Ad Campaign by Creative Director Trey Laird and Photographers & Directors Mert and Marcus with model David Beckham

Boss enters a new era for bodywear with a campaign that not only is the brand’s biggest global campaign yet, but also sets a new high water mark for meaningful multichannel marketing in the post-digital age. Developed in collaboration with creative director Trey Laird and photographer and director duo Mert and Marcus, the campaign forms another chapter in the brand’s longterm partnership with David Beckham, who reprises his role as a class-act underwear-clad heartthrob while introducing a few new tricks.

From the opening of the film, it’s clear that Boss One is taking bodywear in a bold new direction. This may be an underwear campaign, but in the first shot of Beckham, he’s wearing a suit. Almost all of the brands that are strong players in the underwear space are also denim brands, but Boss’ heritage isn’t denim; it’s suiting. Especially since the brand’s refresh three years ago, Boss has done consistent work to make its name synonymous with the confidence and power of a perfectly tailored suit, and that’s exactly the energy that David Beckham embodies, carrying it with him whether he’s wearing a suit, just his underwear, or – as the film cheekily hints at in its clever finale – nothing at all.

Exuding a Bond-esque sense of athletic elegance, Beckham pulls up in a classic sports car and enters a New York City loft, where he wastes no time stripping down to his briefs and feeling right at home. With gorgeous lighting and cinematography that channels 80s neo-noir classics, and supercharged by a perfect soundtrack choice in the atmospheric intensity of Phil Collins’ classic “In the Air Tonight,” Mert & Marcus paint Beckham as the embodiment of a man who is at home in himself – the familiar Boss energy but with a new sexiness.

But this is New York City, and David isn’t alone. In the next building over, the attendees of a penthouse party realize they can get a free peek through Beckham’s beautiful loft window, and a cheeky narrative of voyeurism ensues. The tension escalates, with the unwitting exhibitionist eventually dropping his briefs boldly emblazoned with the Boss logo to the delight of his onlookers. When he finally notices them watching, he simply gives a smile and a wave, that trademark twinkle in his eye.

Boss has a strong business in underwear already, but the brand has never done a major global campaign in the category. The creative team more than rose to the challenge for the launch, and as Laird explains, each thoughtfully conceived element – from casting to styling to cinematography – comes together to boldly announce the new era of Boss as a major force in bodywear. “We wanted to do something that is super cinematic,” said the creative director. “There’s something about it that’s sexy and bold and masculine, but it also has that little bit of a charm at the end, which is super authentic to David. He’s always been that sexy British icon, globally beloved athlete, but he also always has that wink to him.

And thinking about the word Boss and what that symbolizes in everything we’ve been building for the last few years, there’s something about the power of a suit and what that says – but then underneath it you’re still the same boss.”

The release of the campaign also demonstrates smart thinking in how a global and beautifully crafted campaign can meet audiences today. While print fallen by the wayside, social media hasn’t replaced it, and instead has prompted the need for a different kind of visual communication entirely. There are few channels for this campaign’s kind of wide-screen, blockbuster, high-caliber visual narrative, and fewer still being utilized to their fullest extent. That’s why a return to cinema is so smart: this is a cinematic campaign, and audiences will be fully immersed in it as they head to theaters ahead of Oscar season. The brand is also launching a first-of-its kind partnership with Netflix and other streaming platforms, cleverly capitalizing on the cultural growth of these channels. Out-of-home activations will see a larger-than-life David Beckham in his Boss Ones appear on billboards and in selected high-traffic locations, while Boss bodywear vending machines will be placed at key locations in Europe and the U.S., selling hero products from the collection in a fun, interactive way. But digital is still very present in the brand’s strategy, and the film was released via a livestreamed preview hosted by David and Victoria Beckham and Mert & Marcus, and featuring an impressive lineup of celebrity guests, all guaranteed to make waves across social media.

Many different touchpoints, all uniquely serving to drive engagement back to Boss One’s core narrative of sexy, elegant empowerment. It’s a spirit that is aptly captured by the line’s smart new slogan: one name says it all.