Trends

John Travolta is Santa in the 2023 Capital One commercial

Posted by

When something works, you don’t need to change it, and that works on so many different levels. Capital One used this principle for the 2023 Holiday commercial campaign, calling again John Travolta to play Santa Claus as they did already in the recent past. But not only: this time, the commercial reenacts his iconic role in Saturday Night Fever, with the American actor dancing again on the notes of Stayin’ Alive by Bee Gees. Why? Because, well, it already worked in the past. Let’s see what happened.

John Travolta returns as Santa Claus in the 2023 Capital One commercial

John Travolta is the protagonist of the 2023 Capital One commercial “Holyday Night Fever,” interpreting a happy Santa Claus shopping and dancing. The spot represents a reinterpretation of his iconic movie Saturday Night Fever, and the song in the background is the theme song of the original film, Stayin’ Alive by Bee Gees. In case you forgot, you can watch Saturday Night Fever‘s opening scene here on Youtube.

The movie Saturday Night Fever was released in 1977, with John Travolta as Tony Manero, a young man from Brooklyn who spends his weekends dancing at a local discotheque, where he is admired for his impressive dance moves. The movie soundtrack was created by the Bee Gees and includes hits like Stayin’ Alive, How Deep Is Your Love, and Night Fever. It was a film that received critical acclaim for its portrayal of the disco subculture, as well as Travolta’s charismatic performance: a commercial success that played a significant role in popularizing disco music worldwide and contributed to John Travolta’s rise to stardom. And the impact of Saturday Night Fever extended beyond the film itself, influencing fashion, music, and dance trends: the 2023 Capital one commercial is only the last example of its influence in the entertainment world.

Quicksilver “Holiday Night Fever” :60 | Capital One
Watch this video on YouTube.

John Travolta’s interpretation of Santa Claus for the holiday season is a classic too: the American actor has already been Santa in 2020, collaborating with Samuel Jackson in this ad. That spot was already showing how life was switching to being remote, using technology to stay home, so the 2023 commercial wanted to mark the “social” version of that idea officially.

It’s a nice return, bringing back the pleasant memory of Saturday Night Fever, the dance move we remember John Travolta for and a nice idea we already saw in a Capital One commercial. It’s Christmas again, and we are happy for it.

Discover other curiosities about popular commercials on Auralcrave

Published by Carlo Affatigato

Carlo has been a web content creator for over 10 years. He founded Auralcrave in 2015, envisioning it as a new space capable of offering different perspectives on topics that passionate all of us. With a scientific background, Carlo developed an interest in music, cinema, literature, and art at a young age, transforming it into a complementary dimension to his professional growth. For years, he was a music journalist specializing in electronic and dance music, writing for the most important Italian magazines (both online and print). Movies and TV series have been a true obsession in many phases of his life: during university, it was not uncommon for him to set the alarm in the middle of the night to watch classic films airing on TV. With the advent of the Internet, Carlo became a keen observer of web and social phenomena, addressing light topics such as advertising, trends, fashion, and general themes. He is the main author of Auralcrave and personally manages its social media, editorial line, book publication, resource management, and business expansion. A former engineer, life coach, husband, and father, he believes that every area of knowledge has interesting stories that deserve to be told and is convinced that doing so makes the world a better place.