Bill Murray Returns in Tweaked Groundhog Day Ad for 2020 Jeep Gladiator

Needless to say, the combined star power of Murray and Jeep proved powerful enough to make the ad go viral. It’s now back, this time with a tweaked message, adapted to the current context of the international health crisis we’re going through.

Always synonymous with freedom and adventure, Jeep wants you to stay home right now. So it’s reusing footage from the Super Bowl ad to deliver that message. You can see the new(-ish) ad at the bottom of the page.

There’s Murray and Phil, waking up in his hotel room as the clock clicks 6 o’clock and Sonny and Cher’s I Got You Babe starts playing. He immediately realizes that it’s the same day all over again, a feeling many of us can relate to right now, living in self-isolation. The ad has been renamed “Same Day” and the change is that, this time, Phil chooses not to get out of bed. So no, the groundhog doesn’t make an appearance in this one.

“We understand that every day is starting to feel the same. Stay home. Stay healthy. When this is over the trails will be waiting,” the ad says. The final footage shows a Jeep tackling a steep incline, in glorious Jeep fashion.

“Wake up. Wash hands. Miss groundhog. Repeat. Every day is probably starting to seem the same, but the more we all remember to stay inside, the sooner we can get back outside. #StayOffTheRoad Jeep. There’s only one,” Jeep writes in the description of the ad.

FCA Chief Marketing Officer Olivier François tells CNBC that Murray agreed to have the Super Bowl footage reused for another ad with no additional costs, which is not a common move for A-listers. He even “actively participated on the creative.” If you needed additional reasons to love him.