🚨 JUST IN: Viewers are buzzing after Jimmy Kimmel Live! rolls out an unexpected NerdWallet collaboration that flips the script on traditional Spon-Con ⚡

In-show advertising is as old as late-night itself, but as shows face declining ratings and shrinking budgets, sponsored content (or “brand activations,” as they’re called in marketing circles) has become increasingly common and, at times, more elaborate than ever before. In this recurring feature, we keep tabs on how late-night shows are working to wed commerce with comedy.

Jimmy Kimmel Live!’s latest in-show advertisement put its host and sidekick back in familiar territory.

The show this Tuesday promoted the financial services app NerdWallet, opting to build a live skit around its latest piece of spon-con. While JKL’s product integrations are more often relegated to pre-taped sketches, the live ad was far from unfamiliar.

Positioning Guillermo Rodriguez as an office employee, the segment bore more than a little resemblance to the last live ad JKL staged back in September, for Kit Kat. This time around, Jimmy Kimmel traded the role of boss for client, seeking financial guidance from Rodriguez.

The conceit is predictably simple: Rodriguez offers questionable financial advice by suggesting, say, that Kimmel invest in a fish tank he dubs “a petting zoo with fish.” That prompted Kimmel to turn to the NerdWallet app. “NerdWallet helps people make smart financial decisions with confidence,” Kimmel explained. “Everything from credit cards to loans to investing.”

The host went on to announce a daily $100,000 sweepstakes that NerdWallet will be running in December, cueing a barrage of balloons to fall from above.

But unlike most of JKL’s product integrations, the NerdWallet skit broke script several times. 

“What are your financ-inal goals?” Rodriguez asked Kimmel to kick off the segment, stumbling over the word twice.

“My financ-inal goals?” Kimmel responded, calling him out.

When the balloons fall to close out the bit, a deflated one managed to fall squarely onto Rodriguez’ face, covering his eyes and prompting Kimmel to break the fourth wall.

“We could have tried that 10,000 times,” Kimmel remarked. “It would never happen like that.”