"I
wonder how much they paid to have their car in that film.” It’s a thought that often arises when a shiny new model is driven by a big-name actor. Surprisingly, the answer is almost always ‘nothing’, and it’s all down to the art of product placement and secrecy befitting a spy thriller.
Back in the day, product placement of cars was more luck than data-derived judgement. Which makes you wonder: what if Sean Connery hadn’t used an Aston Martin DB5 in 1964’s Goldfinger or Steve McQueen hadn’t been at the wheel of a Ford Mustang chasing down a Dodge Charger in 1968’s Bullitt? We can only speculate what such appearances might have done for the growth of a brand or model.
Today, product placement is seriously sophisticated, and the strategy is so commercially sensitive that no manufacturer I spoke to would go on record about it.