Waitrose sells Christmas in this endearing romcom starring Keira Knightley

Waitrose has mined the appeal of Richard Curtis outings in ‘The Perfect Gift’, starring Keira Knightley and Joe Wilkinson.

Wonderhood Studios and director Molly Manners have enlisted Keira Knightley and Joe Wilkinson for Waitrose’s 2025 Christmas film, which marks the brand’s latest upmarket seasonal push.

The four-minute story centres on Phil (Wilkinson), a recently widowed man who finds an unlikely spark of romance with Keira Knightley’s character at the Waitrose cheese counter. The advert follows Phil through a gentle festive transformation, from lonely shopper to someone rediscovering joy, anchored around scenes at Waitrose and moments of understated warmth.

Knightley’s presence brings a sense of cinema to the proceedings, while Joe Wilkinson’s performance feels a bit off kilter, not unlike a quirky sitcom, injecting a bit of humour and humanity.

The campaign’s creative credits span a large team at Wonderhood, including CCO Tamara Cross and senior creatives Jennifer Ashton and Oliver Short, with production support from MG OMD.

The ad is presented as a mock trailer for a reasonably believable film, albeit one that rather unfeasibly mostly takes place inside Waitrose stores. Phil’s evolving story echoes previous Waitrose campaigns, such as ‘Coming Home’ or ‘Too Good To Wait’, but with more of a focus on emotional complexity and romance. Waitrose, then, is selling Christmas not just as food, but as a feeling. ‘The Perfect Gift’ takes a leaf from John Lewis’s playbook and is a pleasant enough watch.

The choice of Keira Knightley gives the ad a 'must-watch' feel, but the understatement and odd sense of melancholy took us slightly by surprise for what is essentially a supermarket Christmas ad.