How A24's marketing strategies made 'Marty Supreme' hard to ignore

A24 has a reputation for pushing the boundaries of marketing and creating a 360-degree atmosphere where it feels like a film is everywhere. This is no different for their latest film, Marty Supreme, which without a doubt would not have reached the same level of attention without its out-of-the-box marketing strategies. But what made it so successful is that it didn’t just promote, rather it changed how people engaged with the film before it was even released.

The film studio reportedly spent around $70 million on the marketing for Marty Supreme, which successfully dominated the internet, public spaces and pop culture. What I think made the campaign work was that it didn’t feel like a campaign; most audiences nowadays are trained to ignore any kind of advertisements, but this was culturally fluent, and it really understood how people actually consume media online. 

It all started with the Zoom marketing skit, which started off believable, then slowly became more chaotic and meme-able. Because Zoom is such a familiar space for audiences and Timothée Chalamet already has a recognisable persona about him, the video was instantly a catch and could be easily shared online, helping to generate curiosity.

The character of Marty was consistently placed inside existing internet culture, with Timothée Chalamet appearing on top of the Las Vegas Sphere, Marty Supreme jackets worn by celebrities and even a giant orange blimp flying over Los Angeles. Beyond driving people to cinemas, these strategies elevated the themes and ideas within the film itself: ambition and dreaming big. Like Barbie pink or Brat green, Marty Supreme’s orange became instantly recognisable, with colour becoming a visual identity.

The campaign also seaped into spaces where traditional film marketing rarely goes. Youtuber Druski’s videos collaborating with Chalamet helped bring the film into a culture that prestigious actors don’t usually occupy, creating viral clips that reached audiences that normally wouldn’t be reached by film marketing. Similarly, Chalamet’s feature on EsDeeKid’s song 4 Raws, which was released without announcement or anticipation, encouraged fans to decode what was happening rather than passively consume it. By leaning into Timothée Chalamet’s old “Lil Timmy Tim” internet persona, A24 embraced rumours instead of trying to control them, which is something most studios tend to avoid.

Importantly, the marketing didn’t try to appeal to everyone as one big mass in the same way. I think that other campaigns last year, such as The Long Walk treadmill stunt in LA, were clearly aimed at a very specific ‘filmbro’ audience which ended up turning others away. A24’s approach was very online but flexible, allowing different audiences to connect with different parts of the campaign.

Perhaps the clearest sign the campaign worked is how it changed people’s behaviour. One TikTok user summed it up perfectly: “I had zero interest in seeing Marty Supreme […] but the marketing has absolutely worked on me.” The shift from indifference about a film about table tennis to engagement and attention that was earned over time rather than forced all at once is a sign that the marketing worked well.