(Photo credit: Rolex)
How Rolex decided to announce that one of the world's biggest actors is now the face of the brand is an interesting study in marketing — and a rare strategy in an industry that loves the spotlight.
Rolex issued no press release and made no social media posts formally announcing that Leonardo DiCaprio had joined the Rolex family. His profile appears today on the brand’s official website, but not on the homepage; instead, it is tucked within the “Rolex Family” section, accessible only after a few clicks.
Rather than releasing a dedicated video celebrating DiCaprio’s partnership, Rolex published a one-minute montage featuring many of its Testimonees, set to L’estasi dell’oro by Ennio Morricone. Among the tennis players, golfers, race car drivers and skiers, DiCaprio appears twice — each time for less than a second. That was the announcement.
Yet, the video itself is unlike any other promotional piece made by Rolex. DiCaprio, despite being one of Hollywood’s most accomplished actors, famously spent years without an Oscar win.
Midway through the clip, Rolex does something unexpected for a video celebrating its ambassadors’ successes: a skier crashes, a tennis player misses a shot, a golfer collapses to his knees, a race car breaks apart and a sailboat teeters on the verge of capsizing. Even Roger Federer is shown, head hung low, wiping away a tear.
But in the third act, the video pivots back to triumph. Persistence and endurance, it suggests, are what make greatness. A crown is not bestowed; it is reached for. The final ambassador shown is DiCaprio, smiling, as he claims his long-awaited Oscar.