Supergreed: Pow! He drinks Budweiser. Zap! He shaves with Gilette. How the new Superman film has made £100 million with the most cynical product placement deals ever

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Or is it a Nokia phone, artfully shot in lingering close-up to maximise exposure of its logo?

The new Superman film Man Of Steel opened in cinemas yesterday. It’s a thundering juggernaut of a movie, two hours and 23 minutes long.

It cost £150 million to make and Warner Bros is said to be spending a further £100 million promoting it worldwide.

The big sell: Henry Cavill as Superman in Man Of Steel is now linked to the brands

But even before a single ticket was sold, it was already well on its way to recouping much of that colossal budget through merchandising and product placement.

An astonishing 94 commercial deals are in place — more than for any other film in history — with experts suggesting they have already made Warner Bros around £100 million.

Suited and booted: The new Superman film has made £100 million in product placements

Gene Garlock, the senior vice-president of worldwide promotional partnerships at Warner Bros, tells me there are 84 international promotional partners, plus a further ten U.S. ones.

That’s far more even than Skyfall, the most recent James Bond film, which clawed back about half of its £93 million budget through deals with companies including Heineken and Aston Martin.

Sharp-eyed cinema-goers will notice that Superman, played by the British actor Henry Cavill, likes to use a Nokia phone.

The native of the planet Krypton also drinks Budweiser and shops at Sears. And those cars tossed about in the action scenes? Spookily, they always seem to be Chryslers.

Not everyone is impressed. One fan tweeted: ‘There’s a ridiculous amount of product placement with #Manof Steel Twizzlers, Gillette, Chrysler...what’s next, Spanx?’

Here, ALison Boshoff reveals the key products getting the super-hard sell.

NOKIA



The biggest deal is understood to be with Nokia.

The company apparently paid a staggering £30 million to be a part of what promises to be summer’s biggest blockbuster.

It is seeking to promote its new phone, the Nokia Lumia 925, although nerds will notice that it is not the model that appears on screen, as the handset had not been made when the film was being shot.

The Nokia 900 is seen being used by reporter Lois Lane, both in her office and her New York apartment.

At one point the classic Nokia phone ring is heard, too, and we see texts being sent and received from Nokia phones.

Big money: Nokia reportedly paid £30 million to be a part of the blockbuster

Back in the real world, Nokia is offering a Man Of Steel app on its phones and various downloads and trailers.

They were also the sponsors of the film’s New York premiere and are launching a global advertising campaign.

Last year the company was involved with the Batman film The Dark Knight Rises, releasing a limited-edition mobile phone.

BUDWEISER

The self-proclaimed ‘King of Beers’ turns out to be the preferred tipple of Clark Kent, Superman’s alter ego. Who knew that Kryptonians enjoyed alcohol?

When villain General Zod arrives on earth and starts smashing it to bits, Clark is on his family farm in Kansas.

He is sipping on a bottle of Bud while he watches Zod’s campaign of destruction unfolding on the news. He is also seen working in a bar which serves Budweiser very prominently.

The brewer is well-known for its deep pockets when it comes to advertising. It has the biggest spend of any beer brand in America and is famous for always taking a TV spot during the Superbowl, the most expensive advertising slot on television.

Budweiser is trying to reverse a three-decade decline in sales.

It also partnered The Wedding Crashers, starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, which was another film aimed at the young male market.

How much did Superman’s slug of suds cost Budweiser? Up to £15 million, according to advertising sources.

CHRYSLER CARS

Chrysler is another big advertising spender and has seized a chance to be linked to the film.

The numerous cars and trucks destroyed in the movie inevitably seem to be Chryslers, with the branding clearly seen. Several pick-up trucks are used as weapons and are hurled around.

Off-screen, Chrysler has created two Superman cars — the S-Series for its Ypsilon and Delta models — to give away in a competition.



Cashing in: Chrysler have several cars and trucks in the movie. The company has created two Superman cars that fans of the franchise can buy

These come with satnav with a Man Of Steel homepage, and with black alloy wheels bearing the Superman logo.

The cars are available in ‘hero blue’ paint — the same colour as Superman’s suit.

On its Facebook page, the car-maker is running an Imported From Metropolis (the city where Superman lives) promotion, with merchandise as consumer prizes. Cost? Around £10 million.

WARBY PARKER

Trendy: Those who are short of sight can transform their look with Superman's specs

Hip spectacle-maker Warby Parker has an on and off-screen tie-in with the film.

On-screen, we see star Henry Cavill putting on a pair right at the end of the film; off-screen, the company has created two limited-edition Man of Steel glasses.

The company is also running a Facebook and Twitter-based campaign offering chances to win the spectacles.

Warby Parker co-founder Neil Blumenthal said: ‘Superman is the original do-gooder, and eyeglasses are a defining part of Clark Kent’s iconic look.’

The company is donating £10 to a New York charity for every £60 purchase.

One version of the glasses, called Chamberlain, has already sold out.

GILLETTE

Gillette has been running an ad campaign on U.S. television for the past month posing the question: how does Superman shave?

Viewers are asked to vote for their favourite explanation.

The tie-in is understood to have brought a further £7 million into the Warner Bros’ coffers.



But it appears to be annoying Superman experts, who have long known that he actually uses his heat vision to burn the stubble off via a shaving mirror.

SEARS STORES

In the film, Clark Kent’s mother, Martha, works at the American department store Sears and the family has Sears-brand Kenmore appliances in the kitchen and Sears Craftsman tools in the barn.

The store is also featured during a battle between the U.S. army and Krypton forces led by General Zod.

Zack Snyder, the film’s director said, somewhat shamelessly: ‘We wanted to ground Superman in a reality that the audience could understand, with iconic American locations like Sears, to make the film feel as authentic as possible.’

No doubt there were sound commercial reasons, as well as artistic ones, for featuring the store, which is thought to have coughed up as much as £25 million to be part of the film.

Sears is offering Something Super discounts around the release date. Earlier this month, 566 employees at the Sears HQ in Chicago dressed up as Superman.

Apparently, this means they have broken the world record for the largest number of people assembled in one place dressed as Superman. Wow!

TOSHIBA

The electronics giant has a UK deal with Warners and is selling some of its wares as ‘hero products’.

A Toshiba laptop, Blu-ray player and Smart TV are all being marketed in tie-ins with the film, and the company has also run a giveaway competition linked to it.

FAST FOOD

Getting on the bandwagon: Even breakfast cereal company Kellogg's has cashed in on the film

Henry Cavill’s incredibly muscular physique does not suggest he spends a great deal of time in fast‑ food joints.

Nevertheless, we see an awful lot of the cheap pancake house IHOP: Superman is thrown through the IHOP sign and Lois Lane is also shown seeking out a school friend of his in an IHOP.

It seems the plugs may be merely for middle-America authenticity, as IHOP is not one of Warner’s official promotional partners.

Hardee’s — the fifth largest fast-food chain in the U.S. — doesn’t feature in Man Of Steel, but the chain has used the Superman director to film a commercial featuring Cavill plugging the Super Bacon Cheeseburger.

The burger features ‘six full strips of bacon woven together into a crispy bacon nest’ — a calorie-laden meal which seems unlikely to help fans emulate Superman’s six-pack.

KELLOGG’s