Coca-Cola is heading to a galaxy far, far away for its latest global campaign, celebrating the iconic Star Wars franchise through limited-edition packaging, online content and augmented reality experiences.
Dubbed “Refresh Your Galaxy,” the collaboration between Coca-Cola and Disney aims to “celebrate meaningful connections,” ideally while sharing one of 27 limited-edition 12 oz. cans and bottles featuring characters from Star Wars, split between Original and Zero Sugar. They will hit stores in July.
For the hardcore collectors, three can designs – The Mandalorian and Grogu, First Order Stormtrooper and Chewbacca – will be available exclusively at Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort.
Each can will also contain a scannable QR code that unlocks augmented reality features, including the ability to record a Star Wars-style hologram transmission. Cinemas themselves will be “front and center” in the campaign, as seen in its first ad.
“For generations, Coca-Cola and Disney have shared a commitment to creating moments of joy and human connection,” said Islam ElDessouky, Global Vice President Creative Strategy & Content at Coca-Cola, in a press release. “This collaboration is about more than just bringing together two iconic brands – it’s about celebrating the power of Star Wars fandom, shared passions, and the strength of community when we lift each other up.”
Nearly 50 years since its original release, Star Wars remains a commercial institution used to sell everything from soap to cookware and everything in between; as George Lucas wisely forecast in 1977, the merchandising rights to the series have proved far more valuable than the films themselves.
In beverage, Darth Vader and co. have appeared on everything from coffee to blue milk to something called “Space Punch,” but the saga has a special relationship with soda.
When Star Wars arrived in Japan in June 1978, over a year after the first film’s U.S. debut, it was already a global smash. That attracted interest from Coca-Cola, and a partnership which marked the sci-fi series’ first marriage with soda.
Coke created 50 different collectible bottle caps for sale in the country featuring characters and scenes for the film for its glass bottles of Coca-Cola, Fanta and Sprite. A select few caps granted instant prizes, like a free bottle, t-shirt or money (10, 20, 50, 100 or 500 yen). Consumers could be entered in a lottery to win a R2D2 AM/FM radio.
Later, it would be Pepsi’s turn at the helm. The soda giant signed a $2 billion global marketing deal with Lucasfilm in 1996 for the rerelease of the special editions of the original Star Wars films, heralded at the time as the biggest product promotion deal in entertainment history.
That was just a lead-up to the massive marketing blitz that accompanied the release of Star Wars: Episode I in 1999. In a campaign similar to this latest Coke promotion, Pepsi released 25 collectable cans (each with a different character) across its Pepsi, Mountain Dew and Diet Pepsi lines, and also used the movie to pilot the short-lived Sprite-competitor, Storm. These days, unopened cans often fetch over $100 from collectors on eBay.
The Pepsi-Star Wars partnership even had its own mascot: Marfalump, a four-armed alien equally obsessed with Star Wars and Pepsi.
Following Disney’s acquisition of Star Wars in 2012, the franchise has tilted back towards Coca-Cola. “Refresh Your Galaxy” represents the biggest beverage partnership since then – unless you count the “thermal detonator” packaging for Coca-Cola, Sprite and Dasani, sold exclusively at the immersive Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge areas in Disneyland and Walt Disney World.