How Netflix dodged the censor to create a sensation
'Narcos Mexico' promised to have more drugs, more violence, and more sex than its already racy parent show. The trouble? Thai advertising standards wouldn't allow any of that to be in the show's ads.
Context
Netflix was launching its new show 'Narcos Mexico', a series filled with sex, drugs and violence, in Thailand. Except a key selling point of the show - the sex, drugs, and violence - was exactly the kind of material the Thai censor wouldn't allow in public advertising.
Objectives
- Drive viewership of our new Narcos spin-off series
- Drive awareness of 'Narcos Mexico'
- Create social buzz and press coverage for the new show
Cultural Insight
"Every day thousands of complaints about the government, transit system, and even weather flood the internet."
Thai people love to hate, and one thing they hate in particular is the government censor.
Strategy
Netflix decided to embrace the censorship and use the very absence of sex, drugs and violence to lure Thai viewers into finding out what the uncut version looked like. The team submitted the original 'Narcos Mexico' trailer and artworks to the Thai authorities and when they were told to cut out inappropriate content, they did. Literally.
Outcome
The campaign delivered 94m impressions and reached 34m people, nearly half of Thailand's population. The Thai public joined in helping to censor various scenes from the show and Netflix claimed it was their most successful campaign to date.