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Andy Cohen is jumping from co-hosting New Year’s Eve on CNN to an even bigger stage: Super Bowl LX.
The “Watch What Happens Live” host will play with animated “taste buds” as part of the latest Big Game promotion from Nerds, the Ferrero Group candy that has gained new traction in recent years with its Nerds Gummy Clusters. The sweet stuff’s 2026 appearance in the February 8 Super Bowl, to be telecast on NBC, will make its third consecutive entry into the event’s roster of advertisers.
“I’ve hosted a Super Bowl party for, you know, as long as I can remember,” Cohen says during a recent interview. “Being a part of a cultural moment is a very big deal to me and something that is not lost on me.” As for what he might do in the actual commercial. “You just kind of have to wait for the ad to see how juicy it all gets,” he says.
Nerds’ ad will air during the second quarter of the gridiron spectacular. NBC has sought from $7 million to $10 million for a 30-second ad, according to people familiar with negotiations.
Cohen cuts a different sort of figure than the celebrities Nerds has tapped in the recent past. Addison Rae assisted the company’s debut effort in 2024 and singer Shaboozey was on hand to entice consumers in 2025. Cohen, who plays a critical role as a producer and host at NBCUniversal’s Bravo, likely has appeal beyond youthful demographics.
Cohen is “media savvy and connected,” says Greg Guidotti, chief marketing officer of the Ferrara Candy Company. “He just knows how to drive excitement on the plan. And that really was a big driver for us.”
Executives behind Nerds are eager to continue bringing new households into its consumer base, says Guidotti, because research shows that people who try the bumpy, crunchy and chewy candy often go back for more. The company believes the Super Bowl is the best place to get that mission accomplished. “With the fragmentation of media being what it is,” he says, sports programming “is the only destination TV that we have left in the world.”
Key to the strategy, says Guidotti, is hammering home information about Nerds, and not worrying about what other Super Bowl advertisers may be doing. “What’s on our radar is, did we break through?” he asks. ”Did it get the recognition on the product?” Too many commercials wow viewers with celebrities, special effects and pop songs, but fail to make sure Super Bowl fans will remember what product the ad was pitching. By making the candy the real star of the show, he says, the company hopes to avoid that outcome.
Cohen appears to agree. “I don’t want to say I was at the center of it because, you know, I have a great co-star,” he says, noting the ad marks the first time he has worked with animated characters.
English (US) ·