I’ll analyse FedEx’s placement soon, but let’s check some interesting facts about Wilson.Īccording to Wikipedia Wilson was created by screenwriter William Broyles Jr. Apparently Wilson and FedEx, the other prominent brand that had a significant part in the movie, didn’t pay for product placement. That ball eventually became “Wilson”, Chuck’s only company on the island. When he opened boxes from the plane, he found Wilson volleyball. Somehow he got company … from the unlikeliest source. FedEx packages in the movie Cast Away (2000, 20th Century Fox, screen capture) The film shows his attempts to survive on the island using leftovers of his plane’s cargo, as well as his eventual escape and return to society. Just to remind you: in Cast Away Tom Hanks is Chuck, a FedEx employee who is stranded on an uninhabited island after FedEx’s plane crashes on a flight over the South Pacific. He even gained fifty pounds during pre-production to make him look like a chubby, middle-aged man. For a large period he was on screen alone. He was capable of being the lone character and the movie would still succeed. At the time of movie production Hanks was one of the hottest names in Hollywood. The movie Cast Away was acclaimed by critics and at the same time a box-office success. In 2000 Tom Hanks collaborated for the second time with director Robert Zemeckis in what was one of the most interesting stories about crashing to a deserted island. But in the year 2000 we had an excellent example of a fourth type: a brand became the character. A product or brand can be visible, used or someone can mention it. Today, Wilson lives a quiet life in Hermosa as a practice ball for a Manhattan Beach U-14 club volleyball program.In my first post on Brands&Films I’ve written that there are three classic types of product placement. However, one of the original Wilson volleyball props did survive. Instead, that particular volleyball found its way to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, or at best, floating around in the Pacific Ocean somewhere. Unfortunately, it appears the final Wilson didn’t end up in a museum, memorabilia store, or in an auction. He creates a “person” from volleyball named Wilson and uses packages that were in the plane during the crash to get to help him survive. During the four years on the island, he uses what he can to stay alive. Named after the volleyball’s manufacturer, Wilson Sporting Goods, the character was created by screenwriter William Broyles Jr.Ĭhuck was on a plane for a problem involving his job, and then the plane crashes he is the only survivor. In the film, Wilson the volleyball serves as Chuck Noland’s personified friend and only companion during the four years that Noland spends alone on a deserted island. The ball, which his character names Wilson, is depicted as his only friend. The film depicts Tom Hanks as a lone survivor stuck on a deserted island. The volleyball used as a prop in the 2000 film Cast Away has sold at auction for a staggering $308,000 (£230,000). Was Wilson in Cast Away a volleyball or a soccer ball? After the film was released, Wilson (one of many prop Wilsons, shh) was sold at auction to ex-FedEx Office CEO Ken May for $18,500.
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