The Hour-Long Old Spice Exploding Yule Log Still Haunts Us

Yule logs and streaming fireplaces have become a favorite for holiday parties at this time of year, but the Old Spice log has never quite caught on. If you take a look at it below, you may understand why – the unique advertising ploy doesn’t just burn like your average log, it explodes continuously for a full hour. If that weren’t enough, the head of actor Terry Crews appears periodically in the flames to shout at viewers.

The Old Spice exploding yule log probably wasn’t meant to be viewed all the way through. It won’t give your family that warm and fuzzy feeling on a wintry morning, and it doesn’t even serve as comforting background noise during a holiday cocktail party. Admittedly, advertisers probably don’t want a stunt like this to burn in the background, and this one does a great job of repeatedly grabbing your attention.

First released in 2017, this ad was certainly a unique gamble to get the attention of consumers, but there’s no reason to think it didn’t work. Old Spice’s ads at the time focused heavily on action, explosions and stunts. The company traded in the absurd all year, from the para-sailing octopus commercial to the sky-writing alpha dog, they somehow branded themselves as “exciting” deodorant.

The inclusion of Terry Crews in the Yule log footage was well-timed. Crews has been part of Old Spice’s advertising for a long time now, ever since he appeared to one-up Isaiah Mustafa, the previous hyperbolic figure in their commercials. Crews has been good-natured about his role in the ads, accepting his part as a caricature of masculinity.

These days, Old Spice seems to have taken their advertising in a different direction for the most part, but their yule log still burns on at the holidays for fans that want to watch it. At only an hour long, this video can’t compete with the yule logs on Netflix and other streaming apps, some of which go on for days without a break. For those that want to set the mood during the holidays, yule logs are available on most major streaming apps now.