Scotch has a Gen Z problem. James Marsden and Sabrina Carpenter are part of the fix

After James Marsden landed the role of Cyclops in the 2000 blockbuster film X-Men, he toasted the then-biggest milestone of his career with the priciest whisky the actor could afford, Macallan 12 Year Old. “I wanted to commemorate that moment by having something very special,” Marsden recalled in an interview with Fast Company. “It’s not something I do often, toasting my achievements. But I felt very proud and wanted to remember the moment.” Marsden has played the mutant superhero role in three subsequent live-action Marvel films and is poised to do so again in Avengers:Doomsday, which is scheduled to be released in December 2026. This year, the Sonic the Hedgehog and 27 Dresses star finds himself sipping Macallan yet again, this time as a paid pitchman in a new advertising spot called “Drink of a Generation.” The campaign will run on Instagram, where Macallan says ages 25 to 34 are the most-reached demographic. Ahead of Father’s Day, which is a popular gift-giving occasion for Scotch, the ad’s copy leans into the intergenerational theme, with Marsden noting that his father has “a love for the finer things.” But halfway through, it is the appearance of his Gen Z-aged son, Jack, that points to a bigger industry theme. James and Jack Marsden [Photo: Macallan] Scotch’s spokespeople are finally getting younger. “What we need to ensure is that we are relevant and that we continue talking to a younger generation and bring them into our story,” Marcelo Colombo, senior vice president of marketing for the Americas business of Macallan’s parent company Edrington, tells Fast Company. “We’re talking to a wider generation, not just the generation of James Marsden.” Other Gen Z and younger millennial-aged Scotch advertising stars include Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc, who serves as global brand ambassador for Chivas Regal under a multi-year partnership, and Puerto Rico singer Rauw Alejandro, who linked up with Buchanan’s for a FIFA World Cup-inspired campaign that debuted in A