Movies and TV shows need money, automakers have it, and producers are typically desperate. Jalopnik readers have come up with the ten worst cases of obviously stuffing your production full of one car just to pay the bills.
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Photo Credit: Transformers
10.) Acura in Thor
Suggested By: Funda
Why it's so blatant: There is no way a government agency like S.H.I.E.L.D. is going to buy a bunch of Acura soft-roaders. The Avengers had the same problem, but Thor was more obvious.
Photo Credit: IMCDB
9.) GM in every Transformers movie
Suggested By: Vlan1
Why it's so blatant: That each of the Transformers movies was a giant GM ad isn't so bad, actually. Even though it should be a ratty old VW Bug, people love the Bumblebee Camaro. Still, the placement was hopelessly obvious.
Photo Credit: Transformers
8.) Plymouth in Leave it To Beaver
Suggested By: Jonee
Why it's so blatant:When the show started in 1957, Beaver's dad Ward drove a Ford, but when Plymouth started shoveling money into the show, he got new Plymouths every year. That went on from '59 through '63. They never even tried to conceal the payoff.
Photo Credit: IMCDB
7.) Nissan in Heroes
Suggested By: T1MEkilla
Why it's so blatant: First of all, one of the characters calls out Nissan Versa! by name, and when the cheerleader's dad buys her a car she screams out, "Oh daddy, you got me the Rogue!" Nissan tried way too hard with this one.
Photo Credit: NBC
6.) Ford in Alias
Suggested By: Aienan, Jeb_Hoge
Why it's so blatant: Much as Alias was a good show that flushed itself down the toilet in a season or two, the main character drove some cool cars, only to be stifled by Ford sponsorship later on.
At one point, she's in a chase and in an overdubbed re-record, she actually shouts out "Quick, the F150!" Above is an actual sot from the episode, lingering on the badge. It was absurd.
Photo Credit: IMCDB
5.) Nissan in Fringe
Suggested By: rolandeschain1958
Why it's so blatant: Fringe used to be painfully saturated with Ford product placement, with SYNC showing up every few minutes. Rather than give that up, the show just moved to Nissan, including this cringe-worthy scene directly addressing range anxiety with the Leaf.
4.) New Knight Rider
Suggested By: For Sweden, For Sweden, NISMOduck
Why it's so blatant: When Knight Rider got a reboot, there was no need to turn KITT into a Mustang. Pontiac was still around! Even the rest of the show was just a giant Ford ad, with a Ford Edge catching up to KITT on a twisty road in one scene.
Photo Credit: Knight Rider
3.) AMC in The Man with the Golden Gun
Suggested By: Pessimippopotamus
Why it's so blatant: We don't mind Bond driving AMCs in this ‘70s cheeseball of a movie, because he does a barrel roll over a river and makes a Matador into an airplane. At the time, however, the rest of the movie was clogged with AMCs, and one character even goes to a dealership, on vacation in Thailand, to buy a car.
2.) Hyundai in The Walking Dead
Suggested By: StreetsideStig
Why it's so blatant: Okay, there's been a zombie outbreak and you need a survival vehicle. And so you trade your tough old Jeep for a mysteriously clean Hyundai soft roader? Even though Elantras are tough enough for the Libyan rebellion, the switch to a Tuscon is more fantastical than the zombies themselves.
Photo Credit: IMCDB
1.) Lisa Catera in Chicago Hope
Suggested By: Blackfoot
Why it's so blatant: Most shows use product placement by having established characters driver certain cars. Cadillac went a step farther, creating its own character into the CBS hospital drama for its '97 season. Reader Blackfoot explains the worst automotive product placement we've ever seen.
The show introduced a new character named Lisa Catera, portrayed by Stacy Edwards. Her initial scene was stilted, with several characters proclaiming how good it was to have Lisa Catera on board - what a good idea it was to have Lisa Catera around, etc, etc..
In the commercial break following this awkward scene, we're assaulted by a Cadillac commercial reminding us to, you guessed it:
Lease a Catera
Photo Credit: Cadillac, CBS