Apple Increasingly Frustrates Helena Bonham Carter by Showing Just How Much a Watch Can Do

In the early 1990s, AT&T famously predicted much of technology’s future in a Tom Selleck-narrated campaign called “You Will.” (See below to revisit the ads, which foresaw everything from remote learning to widespread WiFi.)

Today, Apple announced its new Apple Watch Series 6 with a sweepingly epic video that follows in the tradition of “You Will”—only to have the narrator (Helena Bonham Carter) be increasingly disappointed to learn that the future is already here.

“Imagine one day a tiny device with an optical sensor will send you an alert if your heart rate is too low,” she intones, quickly being corrected with the fact that the Apple Watch already has that ability.

Announced at the brand’s annual fall product reveal event, Apple Watch Series 6 continues the device’s expanding focus on health and wellness tools, most notably by adding the ability to monitor your blood oxygen level. Low blood oxygen, or hypoxemia, can be a sign of breathing or circulation problems.

The blood oxygen monitoring feature is featured prominently in the closing scene of the ad, which folds it together with a litany of other health features that have been added to the Apple Watch over its previous generations.

Apple has released no agency credits for the Apple Watch Series 6 launch spot.

The video was directed by Craig Gillespie, a veteran commercial director also known for his critically acclaimed films I, Tonya and Lars and the Real Girl.

Gillespie’s previous high-profile ad work includes Snickers’ beloved 2010 spot starring Betty White and Audi’s 2016 Super Bowl ad, “Commander,” set to David Bowie’s “Starman.”

As promised, here’s a look back at AT&T’s prophetic “You Will” spots:

Join Ryan Reynolds, Dwyane Wade, Keisha Lance Bottoms, Andrea Brimmer, Gail Tifford, Antonio Lucio and more at Brandweek, Sept. 14-18, for five days of Main Stage insights, in-depth Masterclasses and virtual experiences. Register now.