As Superman sailed into theaters last weekend, a surprising new Cash App advertisement starring Timothée Chalamet hit the big screen before Clark Kent. It sent his fans into a frenzy while outlets like Esquire covered the mysterious collaboration, wondering why it’s nowhere to be found aside from movie theaters.
More has been revealed as the creative two-minute spot, titled “Heirloom,” debuted online today and Cash App confirmed the details of its first-ever partnership with the two-time Academy Award nominee. It includes the clip, seen below, as well as out-of-home advertising in New York City and Los Angeles, limited-edition Cash App Card stamps designed with Chalamet and more.
For the partnership with the financial platform, Chalamet recruited previous collaborators Aidan Zamiri and Elijah Bynum to write and direct the spot. Chalamet worked with Zamiri — a photographer and director who has worked with everyone from Billie Eilish and Charli xcx to Drew Starkey and Linda Evangelista — on his Rolling Stone cover to promote the Bob Dylan film, while he previously teamed with Bynum on the filmmaker’s 2017 effort Hot Summer Nights. (Bynum most recently directed Jonathan Majors in Magazine Dreams.)
The Cash App spot finds Chalamet as the lone customer doing some grocery shopping in a remote produce shop operated by a man and his son. While perusing the seemingly rare wares, he stops to take stock of what’s there. “So these are rare vegetables,” a black tank top-clad Chalamet asks the elder employee. “’Cuz I feel like I’ve seen a lot of these before.” The man assures him that he’s not as the “seeds were scattered by hand in volcanic soil and washed in spring water, dried in linen sheets.” He then shows Chalamet a variation of mangelwurzel, a root vegetable, but the actor is distracted by the man’s son who keeps staring at him. The actor is Izaac Wang, best known for starring in Sean Wang’s Sundance breakout Didi.
The encounter then opens up a conversation about how the owner only accepts antiquated forms of payment like iron ingots, salts and cowrie shells. Wang argues with his father that outdated currencies no longer work and he suggests Cash App as an alternative. “Your stuck in yesterday when today is already tomorrow,” he says. “It could be a lot easier if we bank through Cash App instead of, you know, livestock or salts or whatever.” Meanwhile, Chalamet is left holding the mangelwurzel.
“Financial literacy across all age groups is important and this spot seeks to emphasize that,” Chalamet said in a statement.
Chalamet for Cash App.
Photo Credit: Aidan Zamiri/Courtesy of Cash App
For their part, Cash App chief marketing officer Catherine Ferdon said that the company wanted to give Chalamet “a platform to encourage open conversations around money” across age groups that felt authentic to him as an artist. He has previously put his signature touches on collaborations with Chanel (in a spot directed by Martin Scorsese) and fashion brands like Nahmias as well as the press tour for A Complete Unknown.
Added Ferdon, “We’ve always empowered our partners to use their own voice and creative lens when sharing Cash App with their audiences, and we’re thrilled to continue that momentum with one of the most prominent and influential actors of his generation.” Cash App has previously partnered with Megan Thee Stallion, Sabrina Carpenter, Kendrick Lamar, fashion designers like Luar and Collina Strada, and athletes like Serena Williams, Max Verstappen and Aaron Rodgers.
Cash App’s “Heirloom” is currently in theaters across the U.S. playing ahead of the No. 1 film Superman. It’s also being loaded in to appear before The Fantastic Four: First Steps. See the ad in full below.
Chalamet for Cash App.
Photo Credit: Aidan Zamiri/Courtesy of Cash App
Chalamet for Cash App.
Photo Credit: Aidan Zamiri/Courtesy of Cash App
Chalamet for Cash App.
Photo Credit: Aidan Zamiri/Courtesy of Cash App
