Black Sails is a show steeped in violence, sex and betrayal - this is ‘pirates for adults’. We wanted to make sure we delivered a campaign which stood up to this mantra. It had to be dark, scary and sexy.

 

The selection of an iconic music track was essential to generate the right mood, delivering immediate commercial appeal for our target audience but also carrying a modern twist in keeping with the nature of the programme. We re-worked Phil Collins's classic 'In the air tonight' which really delivered and complimented the on screen feel we wanted to generate. 

 

There had to be a real sense of scale to this campaign, we wanted to make the viewer feel like they were seeing it everywhere, it had to feel oppressive and intimidating - like an invasion of pirates was imminent.

 

The outdoor executions in railway stations and the takeover of Talksport drive time delivered genuine impact, complemented by the chosen campaign line; 'A darkness is coming’, which heightened the sense of impending doom. The key iconography was the classic skull and cross bones motif but this was modernised using the face of the key protagonist, Captain Flint, to generate a ghostly and striking visual. 

 

Overall results for the programme launch were positive and the series really delivered with an average audience of 247k, 35% of which were new viewers to the channel.