Thanks to Sunday's downer Super Bowl spot, we all learned that Nationwide isn't exactly on the side of the angels.
Now, the divine comedy of this "extended cut" parody from Funny or Die and director Alan Richanbach (who co-wrote it with Travis Helwig) drives that message home. ("Funny or Die," by the way, nicely sums up Nationwide's approach to its two ads on Sunday.)
The shaggy-maned kid from the big-game commercial—actually, a kid actor playing the kid actor—shows up at the pearly gates, and whines on and on about meeting his demise in a preventable household accident.
If that punk keeps "harshing the vibe," he doesn't have a prayer of getting into paradise, which is, after all, "chill as hell." There's a cute bit at the end, when a new shaggy arrival reminds us of the enduring popularity of a certain tried-and-true Super Bowl ad trope.
Funny or Die aren't the only ones poking fun at Nationwide this week. Check out Conan O'Brien's spoof of the commercial below.