We’ve seen plenty of stunning movie poster designs over the last decade, proving that Hollywood doesn’t have to resort to the standard ‘floating head’ favoured by the likes of Marvel. But the most ingenious piece of poster design might still be this cheeky example from back in 2015, which is doing the rounds online over a decade later.
Legend, the Tom Hardy-led biopic of the notorious Kray twins, received mixed reviews. Amongst the four-and-five-star write ups were a bunch of two-star condemnations. But the studio found a pretty ingenious way to use one of the latter to its advantage.
Yep, those two stars nestled between Tom Hardy’s two heads are exactly that – two stars. But thanks to the fact that several of the stars from better reviews are overlapped by said heads, the impression is that there could easily be another two stars hidden. (There aren’t.)
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At the time, the sheer audacity of the design raised plenty of eyebrows. Even the reviewer himself, The Guardian’s Benjamin Lee, saw the funny side. “There’s something maddeningly brilliant about this promotional sleight of hand,” he said. “Technically, there’s nothing dishonest about the use of my rating. I gave it two stars and there are just two stars on display. I’ve been trolled and I’m totally alright with it.”
And it’s still being enjoyed today, with the poster currently top of Reddit’s r/DesignPorn page. “I watched the movie entirely based on knowing they did that,” one user comments, while another adds, “At the time I remember this cunning move getting more attention than the film.”
Legend (2015) stealthily snuck in The Guardian’s 2 star review from r/DesignPorn
Like all the best print ads, this is one double-take-worthy piece of design. Now, if only the horror world would take note.
