Jennifer Coolidge Reunites With e.lf. to Make the Lipstick of Her Dreams

Jennifer Coolidge’s improv inspired a new campaign and product collection from e.l.f. Cosmetics. 

The actress is continuing her partnership with e.l.f. after previously starring in the brand’s first Super Bowl ad earlier this year. She has collaborated with e.lf. to create Dirty Pillows, a limited-edition lip collection available for purchase as of Sept. 27. 

While on set for the Super Bowl commercial, e.l.f. asked Coolidge what she would name her own lipstick if given the chance. In an outtake, she jokingly said “swollen” and “dirty pillows,” a twist on the brand’s pre-existing lipstick shade called Dirty Talk. 

The blooper, which went viral on social media, prompted e.l.f.’s team to develop products based on Coolidge’s ideal lip shade. The result is the Dirty Pillows Lip Kit, which includes a satin lipstick in the shade “Dirty Pillows,” a lip plumping gloss called “Swollen,” a lip liner in the shade “Fill Frontal,” and a mirror. 

In the playful ad, created by agency Shadow, Coolidge is so preoccupied with the lip collection that it infiltrates her dreams. 

“I’m thrilled to share the makeup secrets of my lips with you,” Coolidge said in a statement. “You’ll know you still have your lips on if you wake up to a dirty pillow.” 

‘Let the magic happen’

E.l.f. Beauty’s chief marketing officer, Kory Marchisotto, told Adweek that this latest collaboration with Coolidge is an example of “the unexpected ways in which we [as a brand] react in real time.” 

The concept for e.l.f.’s Super Bowl campaign similarly sprung from a candid moment with Coolidge. After the actress said at the Golden Globes that her dream role would be to play a dolphin, e.l.f’s ad depicted Coolidge rehearsing for her dolphin audition. 

The lip collection is also “us translating Jen’s dream into reality,” said Marchisotto. “None of this was planned. It shows our ability to lean into signals.” 

Coolidge met with e.l.f.’s innovation team to develop the products. According to Marchisotto, the partnership was a step beyond typical influencer marketing, since Coolidge played a key role in co-creating the products.

Marchisotto outlined the brand’s approach to collaborating with creators: “Are we kindred spirits with who we’re working with? Do we care about the same things? … From there, we let the magic happen. We are not prescriptive; we are open.” 

“Thanks to the enduring partnership and incomparable creative energy between Jennifer Coolidge and e.l.f., as well as e.l.f.’s loyal fans, we were able to explore the subversive and deliver something unexpected.  As we developed, scripted and shot the campaign, we transformed what was once a piece of Jen’s imagination – a Dirty Pillows lipstick – into a real-life treasure for the brand’s community,” Shadow’s executive creative director, Brian Vaughan, said in a statement.