Pasty Man breaks the butt taboo

Pasty Man has decided to sell sunscreen using the world's oldest backside. And somehow, it works.

A 90-year-old man's backside has spent almost its entire life hidden from the sun, and as a result, it has largely avoided the decades of UV damage suffered by his face, neck and arms.

This is the simple premise of ‘The 90-Year-Old Butt Theory’ and uses it to deliver a lesson about skin damage and sun protection.

Rather than telling viewers UV exposure accelerates skin ageing, it shows them. Indeed, Pasty Man’s in-house team that made the ad has described the brand as: "Men who love the sun but hate to die."

A firm trend

The campaign sits alongside a growing wave of butt-friendly ads, using both shock value and an on-brand message.

While Calvin Klein turned the firm butt into a brand asset with campaigns featuring Mark Wahlberg, Kate Moss and countless other models, the recent wave of butt empowerment takes on a more everyman appeal.

Bidetlity took it to more provocative levels. The puckered lips visual, paired with sleek shots of the product, is intended to convey a sense of ‘intimacy and cleanliness’ in a humorous way. 

Andrex’s ‘Get Comfortable’ brand platform, by FCB London, meanwhile, focuses on the British societal taboo and discomfort surrounding toilet use, leading to an unhealthy relationship with their bodily functions.

The launch film, titled ‘First Office Poo’, portrays a woman inadvertently emitting an audible fart in front of her co-workers. Following a brief moment of awkwardness, she notices the Andrex puppy beneath her desk, offering a reassuring nod.

Make no butts about it; bottoms are back.