Levi’s is turning the 2026 Super Bowl into a global runway for originality with its new “Behind Every Original” campaign, fronted by music powerhouses ROSÉ and Doechii and built around one cheeky premise: that the most iconic view in denim is from the back. Debuting with the anthem film “Backstory,” the campaign celebrates people who push culture forward while keeping the camera locked on backstories and backsides, reframing jeans as living archives of movement, memory, and self expression rather than just product.
A Super Bowl Film Shot from the Back
The “Backstory” spot, directed by Kim Gehrig, flips the usual celebrity formula by showing both stars and “everyday Originals” exclusively from behind, using pocket arcs, the Red Tab™, and silhouettes as the main identifiers. Every frame is, as the brand describes it, a celebration of the backside “in all its denim covered glory,” with the cast strutting, dancing, and moving through real life scenes while living in their Levi’s. Every frame is a celebration of the backside in all its denim covered glory.
Alongside ROSÉ and Doechii, the lineup features Shai Gilgeous Alexander, Questlove, model Stefanie Giesinger, and even Woody from Disney Pixar’s “Toy Story,” each framed as an “Original” whose story is told through how they move in their jeans. It’s a casting strategy that mirrors how culture actually travels now, through music stages, tunnels, social feeds, and screens, while keeping denim as the quiet constant across every scene.
Levi’s Stakes Its Claim on Culture
“Behind Every Original” is conceived as a global brand platform that will roll out over 2026, continuously revealing more backstories anchored by iconic Levi’s products.
“One of the things I love most about the ‘Behind Every Original’ campaign is that it threads together a story only Levi’s® can tell,” said Kenny Mitchell, global chief marketing officer of Levi Strauss & Co. “This global campaign celebrates our place at the center of music, sports and fashion culture — as well as in the closets of fans across generations. It’s fitting to have it launch during the Super Bowl being played at Levi’s® Stadium, which has become a cultural moment in its own right, through the unifying power of sports.”
Launched from Levi’s Stadium during the Super Bowl, with a cast that spans K pop, hip hop, the NBA, film, and fashion, the campaign makes a clear editorial statement: in a year crowded with collaborations and drops, Levi’s is claiming the backside, and the stories sewn into it , as its signature territory. For fashion and retail, it signals a denim narrative built not on trend chasing but on originality, lived in authenticity, and silhouettes that are meant to be seen in motion.
