Thirty-seven years after introducing its iconic slogan “Just Do It” into the cultural lexicon, Nike is reintroducing it to a new generation—reframing it as a provocation for young athletes to determine what their “it” is before encouraging them to, well, you know.
Created by Wieden + Kennedy Portland, directed by Vania and Muggia of production company Iconoclast, and narrated by Grammy-winning multihyphenate Tyler, the Creator, the 60-second anthem film, Why Do It?, is set to a dramatic operatic score while slow, cinematic shots of athletes in states of play appear onscreen. The “Chromakopia” artist ponders the motivation behind each display of occasionally harrowing athleticism.
“Why would you make it harder on yourself?” he asks at one point.
The spot’s all-star roster includes marquee names such as basketball’s LeBron James and Caitlin Clark, football’s Saquon Barkley, tennis’ Carlos Alcaraz and Qinwen Zheng and gold medal-winning husband and wife Paralympic and Olympic track stars Hunter and Tara Woodhall.
In a climate in which, to many young people, trying feels pointless, risk feels daunting and perseverance feels futile, the spot is a reminder that extraordinary things are achievable when you take the leap (an actual physical requirement of most of the sports featured).
“‘Just Do It’ isn’t just a slogan—it’s a spirit that lives in every heartbeat of sport,” Nicole Graham, EVP and chief marketing officer of Nike shared in a statement. “It’s the belief that, together, we can inspire, unite and elevate ourselves beyond what we thought possible.”
Agency: Wieden & Kennedy Portland
