☕ Show business

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Why brands are borrowing classic TV tropes for ads.

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Tuesday, September 22, 2026

The Morning Brew promotes its Marketing Brew Summit, which is almost sold out, and encourages readers to grab a ticket for the September 30 event in New York. The newsletter also features an article on recent ad campaigns from brands like Denny's, Johnston & Murphy, and JCPenney, which are inspired by traditional TV show formats. These campaigns aim to entertain audiences rather than interrupt them.

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September 22, 2026

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It’s Tuesday. Fun fact: the Marketing Brew Summit is almost sold out. Less fun fact: you’re currently not one of the 300+ marketers who already have a ticket. We’re not saying you’ll regret it—we’re just saying September 30 in New York is going to happen either way. Grab your ticket and be there for it.

In today’s edition:

Turn the TV on 📺

Making a mark 🖊️ —Kristina Monllos, Alyssa Meyers

Still images from recent campaigns for Denny's, Johnston & Murphy, and JCPenney are featured in a collage.

Screenshots via @dennys/YouTube, @jcpenney/YouTube, @johnstonmurphy/YouTube

Is that an ad, or is it a TV show?

Recent ad campaigns from several different brands are trying to be a little bit of both. Denny’s and Skittles borrowed the feel of sitcoms, JCPenney riffed on a docu-drama/reality show, and Johnston & Murphy parodied SportsCenter.

As advertisers look to entertain audiences more than interrupt them, some are taking inspiration from more traditional forms of entertainment to do it. For some, the inspiration comes down to the look and feel. For others, it might also include the release schedule and episode structure: Skittles, for example, rolled out a sitcom series, “Ghost Roommate,” in six-second increments on TikTok around Halloween.

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