You know Danny Trejo as the tattooed, machete-wielding tough guy who doesn’t flinch in a firefight. But in a hilarious new ad from Leo Chicago for Huggies, the Hollywood hardman trades grit for giggles—and cuddles up to a pack of lambs.
The spot, promoting Huggies’ new and improved Snug & Dry diapers, leans into Trejo’s famously rugged persona only to completely upend it. The setup? A baby’s first birthday party. Trejo casually rips a piñata in half, crushes oranges into a juice glass with one hand—pure alpha energy. But when he touches a Snug & Dry diaper? The world stops. Cue soft lighting, baaing lambs, and angelic music as Trejo is overcome by the product’s “unexpected softness.”
It’s a surreal, laugh-out-loud moment that ends with Trejo snapping back to reality—caressing the diaper mid-party while everyone looks on, stunned. Trying to recover, he quickly slips back into his steely persona. But the damage is done. The man’s been moved. Watch below:
“We are thrilled to be working with the legendary Danny Trejo,” said Andrea Zahumensky, North American president of baby and child care at Kimberly-Clark (and a mom of three). “While immediately recognized as the ultimate tough guy, Danny is anything but. His presence adds a delightful surprise and helps us bring to life just how soft the new and improved Huggies Snug & Dry really is.”
Produced by Leo Chicago, the campaign takes a playful swipe at the conventions of diaper ads—and lands the punch. It’s not every day you see a man who once played Machete snuggling imaginary lambs for a baby brand. But when softness is the name of the game, even the toughest guys melt.
And yes, the diapers really are that soft. Don’t ask how we know.
CREDITS:
BRAND: Huggies
- Patricia Corsi – Chief Growth Officer
- Andrea Zahumensky – President, Kimberly-Clark North America
- Gustavo Sarkis – Head of Creative
- Matt Baresi – Vice President
- Justin Reekie – Head of Brand
- Jen Kasmarick – Creative Director
- Evan Scanzera, Erin Greitens – Brand Managers
- Lauren Gavel – Project Manager
- Alison Tidwell – Strategist
AGENCY: Leo Chicago
- Kate Jeffers – CEO
- Renato Fernandez – Chief Creative Officer
- Ashley Geisheker, Nikki Kehm, Annemarie Norres, Natalie Taylor, Kelly Roe, Diana El-Chantaf, Brian Brydon, Sara Knee – Vice Presidents
- Justin Duchene – Account Director
- Lindsay Tyler – Producer
- Bobby Kuhn, Tricia Gillentine – Associate Creative Directors
- Taylor Castelo Branco – Strategy Director
- Rachel McClard – Account Director
- Khalilah Lane – Account Executive
- Phoebe Alvarez – Project Manager
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Epoch Media Group
- Director: Matias & Mathias
- Melissa Culligan – Partner
- Megan Murphree – Executive Producer
- Ritu Paramesh – Producer
POST: The Harbor Picture Company
- Warwick Hewitt – Executive Producer
- Tia Perkins – Head of Production
- Sebastian Greene, Brad Martin – Producers
- Joni Brandenburg – Colorist
- Oisín O’Driscoll — Colorist
- Nadia Dabibi – Executive Producer
- Vivian Kim – Designer
- Melissa Graff – Flame Lead
- Felipe Passarini – Compositing
EDIT: Arcade Edit NY
- Fernando Raigoza — Editor
- Lee Bacak – Edit Assistant
- Adam Becht – Executive Producer
- Alexa Berman – Head of Production
- Wendy Umanzor – Producer
Sound & Music: PXP Studios
- Jenny McDonald – Executive Producer
- Jason Ryan — Sound Mix
Media Agency: Spark Foundry
PR: Alison Brod Marketing + Communications
Talent: Danny Trejo
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