Have you noticed what lurks in the darkness when you take the subway between Majorstuen and the National Theatre? The stretch has now become a terrifying scene from HBO Max's new series.
To promote the horror series “IT: Welcome to Derry,” HBO Max has broken new ground in outdoor advertising. What better location for the world’s most feared clown than the abandoned, dark, and dusty Valkyrie Station?
To give subway passengers a real glimpse into Stephen King's spooky universe, the old subway station, which closed 40 years ago, has been visited by the dreaded Pennywise. A 2,3-meter-tall clown now lights up the tunnel with his iconic red balloon, known from the films.
To make travelers extra aware of the advertisement, the large X-Track screens at Majorstuen and Nationaltheatret metro stations display a cryptic message: "Look closely. IT's underground."
The interaction between media channels
An important aspect of this campaign is to allow multiple media channels to play together. That is why Warner Bros Discovery, Schibsted Partnerstudio and the two influencers Oliver Bergset og Garden Oksendal invited with JCDecaux on an inspection to document the creepy visit. This was later used as advertiser content both on VG and on the TikTok stars' own profiles. In total, the videos have now received over 80,000 views.
With strategic use of location and creative elements from the series, HBO Max evokes real emotions in the target audience, who get to experience the story as they travel on the subway. This is in collaboration with the media agency OMD.
Valkyrien Metro Station was also used to promote the new season of Squid Game last year. Read more about how Netflix used unexpected locations here..
