XXX & NSFW: The Ads and Music Videos That Set Pulses Racing
I have to confess that when I set out to work on this particular editorial brief, I thought it was going to be an exercise of mostly fun and games. This industry has a tendency to get all saccharine around Valentine’s Day, recycling images of roses and hearts in red and pink, ad nauseam, to mark the occasion. My idea was to give everyone regardless of job title a chance to reminisce and share their erotic picks from the realm of ads and music videos.
Here's the brief in question: This Valentine’s Day, we’re revisiting the era when ‘sexy’ was the only creative idea. From steamy ads to provocative music videos, we want to revisit the boldest campaigns that turned up the heat and pushed boundaries. What made them iconic? Were they daring or just provocative? In the spirit of bringing sexy back, we’d love to find out so send us the ads and music videos that got you hot under the collar or simply made an unforgettable impression.
At first, I sat back and waited for the responses to roll in as they often do with other not-nearly-as-fun briefs. Then, with the deadline looming closer and closer, I couldn’t help but wonder, were people too anxious to be horny on main..?
The stats tell us that when it comes to media like TV and films, we’re exposed to less sex than ever before. There’s about 40% less sexual content in major films than there was at the beginning of the millennium and a survey by Teens and Screens revealed that people aged 10 to 24 want to see way less sex, and especially trauma, depicted onscreen. Despite this, filmmakers have started to pushback somewhat and recent releases like Sean Baker’s ‘Anora’, Halina Reijn’s ‘Babygirl’, and Robert Eggers’ ‘Nosferatu’ all addressed and depicted sexual themes with varying degrees of explicitness while making it clear that doing so was central to their films’ and characters’ plot and development respectively.
On the other hand are projects like ‘Euphoria’ and ‘The Idol’, both from the showrunner Sam Levinson, which received ample criticism for needless objectification and sexualisation of its characters. Much of the ire was directed at ‘The Idol’ in particular; its one-season outing seemed to serve as little other than a vehicle for empty subversion and tasteless visuals.
It's undeniable that advertising is less sexy today than it was a decade ago and, overall, it’s not a great loss. The majority of brands that did engage in sexy and sexualised advertising often did so via narrow beauty ideals and a decidedly heterosexual gaze, perpetuating stereotypes and alienating large segments of consumers. I’m thinking specifically about Carl’s Jr ads here which featured slim, buxom bikini-clad women devouring obscene burgers beside a car of some kind, all for the sole purpose of titillation. The company stopped running those ads in 2017 though the 2025 Super Bowl saw Carl’s Jr return ‘to form’ with a thinly veiled update on the formula starring the mega-influencer Alix Earle.
“There’s no denying that bodies have been and continue to be misused to sell, sell, sell (e.g. a 15-year-old Brooke Shields for Calvin Klein),” says Amy Downes, Wonderhood Studios creative director. “But I think it’s important to make a distinction between occasions where the individual has agency, and where they don’t. Expression and recognition of sexuality isn’t inherently bad, but I just don’t think it signals any kind of meaningful metamorphosis any longer.”
Amy notes that we are living in a cultural, attitudinal shift towards sex. “Younger generations are becoming more and more apathetic towards sex, it’s definitely a curious topic to interrogate, because they’re not prudish,” she states. “They’re more open in terms of conversation and better educated than we ever were. And It’s not like music videos have become less sexy or sexual (cc: ‘WAP’). But I do wonder whether the ‘Slave 4 U’ or ‘Dirrty’ visuals would shock and titillate in the same way today…if not, why bother ‘bringing it back’?”
Pointing to Bianca Censori and Bonnie Blue, Amy says that we have now “literally seen it all.” She continues: “Their stunts might generate outrage from right-wing press, but I’m inclined to agree with gen z – sexy as a standalone ‘idea’ is just boring now. Audiences today demand higher-concept creative from artists, so if we’re still using sex to sell – then it needs to be more substantive than a glistening torso and matching Diet Coke can.”
Is there no space for sexiness in advertising today? Amy’s point about agency and ideas mark the crucial distinction here. Decades ago, Brooke Shields didn’t have agency when she featured, underage, in those Calvin Klein ads; last year FKA twigs did when she appeared semi-nude in a campaign for the brand. Curiously, UK’s ASA first banned the ad citing the “strength of public feeling” and on the basis that it presented the singer as “a stereotypical sexual object” though it later backtracked after FKA twigs defended the image on her Instagram, saying “i do not see the ‘stereotypical sexual object’ that they have labelled me. i see a beautiful strong woman of colour whose incredible body has overcome more pain than you can imagine.”
Similarly, what we now know about Britney Spears, her career, sexualisation, and eventual conservatorship should make us uncomfortable, make us question critically how images are sold to us, and who is in control and profiting from it all. But it’s not the same as the current trajectory of Sabrina Carpenter’s career whose lyrics, styling, and live shows were labelled as offensive, lazy, and over-sexualised by ‘80s hitmaker Pete Waterman. Carpenter responded: “My message has always been clear – if you can’t handle a girl who is confident in her own sexuality, then don’t come to my shows,” drawing attention to the fact that shaming female pop-stars for how they present is hardly revolutionary.
This is all to say that my quest to mark Valentine’s Day with a minimal amount of thinking and a healthy dose of ‘sexy’ backfired a little but I’m not giving up just yet. A few brave souls did share their picks below and some even acknowledged the ‘fun’ nature of the brief (I needed that).
Still from Alan Cumming's fragrance ad
In the spirit of solidarity, I’ll share my pick first: an ad for the actor Alan Cumming’s fragrance named, but what else, ‘Cumming’. It sits somewhere between a pastiche of and an homage to celebrity endorsements, especially fragrance, with many of the shots referencing older ads. But it’s not played entirely for laughs. Deliberately provocative, an air of undeniable sensuality underpins it as Alan ponders, in his native Scottish accent, what the essence of ‘sexy’ is.
Katarina Julie Madsen
Head of creative: advertising & games, Wise Music Creative
Robbie Williams, Nicole Kidman, 'Somethin’ Stupid'
Robbie Williams’ recording of ‘Somethin' Stupid’ with Hollywood megastar Nicole Kidman was a Christmas chart-topper in 2001, despite not being a particularly Christmas-y song. The video accompanying the single shows the two as a couple in love, sending longing looks at each other and exchanging slightly naughty Christmas presents in a cosy holiday home, before putting those gifts to use… The steamy ending of the video creates a not-so innocent visual to go with the otherwise sugary sweet lyrics and melody of the famous song.
'Somethin' Stupid' was written by C. Carson Parks and originally made famous by Frank Sinatra and his daughter Nancy – their version also reached No. 1 on the UK Chart, spending two weeks at the top in April 1967. Williams and Kidman’s version introduced the evergreen tune to a new audience in the early 2000s. The pair were some of the biggest stars in their respective fields – Robbie’s latest album going 10× Platinum, and Nicole having starred in Moulin Rouge!, earning her an Oscar nomination.
The song is still widely requested for use in sync for both film, TV and advertising today. It was recently featured in the Netflix production Baby Reindeer, which sprouted a TikTok trend using the song. Plenty of new covers have been released throughout the years, most recently last year by Danish artists Oilly Wallace and Emma Sehested Hoegh.
Andy Kelemen
Commercial director / producer at Dessert Before Dinner
Nine Inch Nails, 'Closer'
Being a child of the early ‘90s, the idea of catching a peek at a risky music video or commercial was always based on pure luck. But seeing Nine Inch Nails’ Closer on MTV, or The Box if you were fortunate, was a real treat.
Being only age nine when this was released, witnessing the impactful editing of graphic, sexual, and industrial images felt like I was watching something my parents would react in horror to.
Spinning pigs heads. Glimpses of nudity. Raw hearts beating in a lab. All incredible. And how the edit progresses perfectly in conjunction with the song created my first memory of fast cuts.
I remember how much discussion it generated at school - ‘Did you see that CRAZY music video for NIN?’ Years later, when I received Mark Romanek’s music video collection on DVD, I realised there was an unedited version of the cut, which was masterful. I fell in love with the video all over again.
[NIN frontman Trent] Reznor has since stated, "The rarest of things occurred: where the song sounded better to me, seeing it with the video. And it's my song."
Mike Jacobs
Founding partner at Strike Anywhere
Coors Light, 'Here's To Football'
Part of their ‘Here’s to Football’ campaign, it was peak early-2000s: a montage of every frat-boy fantasy, culminating in a guy gleefully listing things he loves – football, hot dogs, cheerleaders, and, of course, twins. My mom would walk in, see it playing, and immediately shut off the TV.
Looking back, it’s telling just how memorable that campaign was. It clearly nailed its target
audience, but its over-the-top absurdity made it impossible to ignore – even for those who hated it. Sex has always sold, but the landscape has shifted. Now, brands are navigating a far more complex conversation around gender, sexuality, and identity. The old playbook doesn’t work the same way, and watching how advertising adapts in this moment is fascinating.
Sara Sutherland
Creative at BBH London
There’s a lot of iconic steamy films out there. Stuff most of us agree on. The expected stuff. Coco De Mer’s orgasm ad. Sexy. Kate Moss pole dancing to The White Stripes. Also sexy. Jeremy Allen White laying back on a couch with his jeans around his ankles. Universally sexy. But there’s more to being sexy than pert boobs and a six pack. So without further ado, I present to you a list of things that are definitely sexy, coming from a person who is definitely not sexy.
Being funny is sexy.
Being yourself is sexy.
Roller skating down a highway in the middle of the night. 100% sexy.
A banging soundtrack is sexy.
Northern accents are sexy
Having a soother is sexy???
Being French is sexy.
And if you can’t do any of that, then lean into every trope because as Trey Parker and Matt Stone rightfully point out…Sex sells.
Pim Lai
Creative director at BMB
Axe, 'Chocolate Man'
In the 2000s, Lynx (or Axe, depending on where you're from) didn't just flirt with sexy, they married it. Their ads showed everyday guys becoming instant heartthrobs after a spritz of body spray. It was cheeky, over-the-top, and yes, it had its problems, like objectifying women and oversimplifying attraction. But here’s the thing – Lynx flipped the script on what it meant to be "manly." Instead of the usual suave alpha male trope, they suggested that any man could be desirable… with the right scent.
And as much as I loathe that unmistakable scent that became a rite of passage for a generation of teenage boys, I loved the unforgettable outrageousness of those Lynx ads. My personal favourite? The Chocolate Man - Dark Temptations.
Symone Ridgell
Director at Scheme Engine
Axe, 'Touch'
Hot, heavy, and highly effective: when sex sold and we bought it.
I want to take you back to an era of raunchiness and just plain biological urge. While Victoria’s Secret Pink ushered me into the throes of puberty, Axe Body Spray was beckoning young men in the aisles of their local grocer with its siren song. The branding embraced vintage playboy mythology, in infamous campaigns packed with cheeky innuendo and audacious promises. Each one hinged on the fantasy of women flocking to an average guy like moths to a pheromone-drenched flame.
In 2025, these campaigns come across as a lingering echo of a fading patriarchy, but there was one that captured something…different. Filled with subtle juxtapositions and erotic foreplay, you’d believe Adrian Lyne oversaw production. So here’s to ‘Touch’ and its lasting, unapologetic virility.
