Ryan Reynolds treats 84-year-old woman born on leap day to her first 'legal drink' in new gin ad
Eighty-four-year-old Arlene Manko is one of those precious few who celebrates her birthday on February 29. That means only one thing, her birthday comes once every four years. And going by that logic, she just turned 21 this year.
Actor Ryan Reynolds was eager to help Manko celebrate her '21st' birthday with her first 'legal' drink from his gin company, 'Aviation Gin'. He shared a video with her on Twitter and Instagram, ahead of the big day.
In the video, the 84-year-old is relaxing in an armchair, showing photos and saying that she was 'technically five years old' when she got married. "I had seven kids in 10 years. Did you think sometimes I didn't want a drink?" she quips.
In the ad, Manko tries and fails to buy alcohol, despite her insistence that she wanted to play by the rules. "I'm not an angel," she admits. And now, she asserts, she 'is ready to party'.
"We wanted her first legal drink to be Aviation Gin," Reynolds says in a voiceover. Manko enjoys the drink and exclaims, "Holy Moses!" She also pretends that she didn't know who Ryan Reynolds was. Reynolds laughs it off and says, "Ignore her. She has been drinking."
Fans quite enjoyed the ad and praised the creative team of Aviation Gin. One wrote, "Aviation Gin has some of the best ads I've ever seen!"
"Their creative team it’s just f%&*ing mind blowing.... long live @AviationGin @VancityReynolds," said another. "There should be a commercial with you and Chris Evans," a fan requested. "Lot's of love to this lady," a fan wrote.
Another pointed out her resemblance to Anthony Hopkins and made a 'Silence Of The Lambs' reference. "I'm sorry, but.... Have the lambs stopped screaming Clarice?" Another netizen tweeted, "That's Anthony Hopkins." One user wrote, "Best video on the interweb. 'holy moses' is a classic." Another user said, "Best of Advertising as always."