Harrison Ford, a sports car and The Traitors castle - inside an ‘unconventional’ Glenmorangie campaign

Glenmorangie Highland single malt Scotch whisky has unveiled a new global campaign starring Hollywood A-lister Harrison Ford.

Legendary for countless iconic movie roles, including the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, the Hollywood actor brings his trademark wry humour to the fore in a series of episodic films directed by Australian actor and film-maker Joel Edgerton.

Once Upon a Time in Scotland takes us behind-the-scenes as Ford journeys to Glenmorangie’s Highland home, to discover the skill and craftmanship that goes into making each bottle of its whisky. It sees the actor enjoy an authentic Scottish experience — from getting to grips with the nuances of Scottish pronunciation and kilt etiquette, to bonding with locals over a dram of single malt — all shot in a deliberately ‘off-script’ style.

Filmed in the picturesque north-east Highlands of Scotland, the campaign captures the natural beauty of the local area. Viewers are taken from the historic distillery in Tain where Glenmorangie has been created for over 180 years, to the storied 19th-century Ardross Castle, which fans of reality TV show The Traitors will recognise, and the dramatic landscapes surrounding Loch Glass.

Glenmorangie

Appearing alongside Ford is the real Glenmorangie distillery team, who embraced their first experience of acting under the guidance of the actor, while the brand’s flagship whiskies, Glenmorangie Original 12 Years Old and Glenmorangie Infinita 18 Years Old also take on a starring role.

The distillery team, including ‘star’ Alan Duff Jnr, had mainly unscripted roles, as Dr Bill Lumsden, Glenmorangie’s whisky creator, explains.

“It was quite spontaneous and a lot of it was unscripted, but that made it authentic,” he said. It was this authenticity that was important to the brand, Dr Lumdsen said, which is why Ford was viewed as a good fit for the ‘tongue-in-cheek’ campaign.

Getting Ford to star was “pushing against an open door”, said Dr Lumsden. Chief executive Caspar MacRae said the A-lister was a genuine whisky lover. He said: “ Harrison knew of Glenmorangie, but he didn't know as well as he needed to, so we auditioned for him.

“He got to try the whiskies and absolutely adored them, and the craft of the whisky. Even though he doesn't often do advertising, this is one where he was really happy to sign up for the creative partnership.”

Mr MacRae said Ford’s authenticity and his global appeal had made the partnership agreeable. He said: “He only advertises or partners with brands if he feels an affinity for them and he's a genuine lover of whisky, and Scotch whisky in particular. We felt he's genuinely aspirational to people of all ages across the world as well.

“Whether you know him as Indiana Jones or Han Solo, or you know him more recently - new audiences will be finding out about him as the Red Hulk in the upcoming Marvel movie in February - he's a fantastic aspect actor that reaches across geographies to be appealing to lots of people. We were trying to create, just as we have done with previous campaigns, something with some artistic merits, and he was really passionate about creating something that was a great story as well.”

Glenmorangie

Dr Lumdsen said what he enjoyed about the series was the fun nature and the twist on the twee traditional vision of Scottish-ness.

He said: “The series of adverts, it does two things - it builds the brand, on the craftsmanship and authenticity of what we do. But it doesn't do it in a boring, geeky way like I would maybe do in a lecture.

“It’s done in a really fun way and I really like the fact that there are elements of what some people might believe to be the way we used to do it with a heather and the tartan, but it's done in a really tongue-in-cheek and fun way. I think the whole thing will be avidly enjoyed by people watching it.

“Caspar and I spent quite a bit of time with him [Ford] doing whisky tastings and just talking to him a little bit about where some of the flavours came from. I think it was wonderful to see two aspects, his love for whisky, but also his love for the craft.”

Master blender Gillian Macdonald said working with such a star was a bit nerve-wracking, but claimed Ford put everyone at ease. She said: “He was very nice, very chilled. He’d met everybody before the filming started and he put everybody at ease.

“And because he was genuinely interested in what was going on and what happened in each one of the areas of the distillery, you just ended up just talking to him like you would do anybody in an education tour or a tasting.”

As for the star himself, Ford said he loved working with the team at the distillery. “They were all great,” he said. “The whole process of filming was full of unanticipated joys, little unexpected moments. It’s a tribute to Glenmorangie’s sensibilities that they let us be less than totally serious. I think what Joel has produced has a certain charm to it, because it’s unpretentious and just amusing.”

Edgerton, director of Once Upon a Time in Scotland, said: “I’ve spent my whole life watching commercials that follow an expected format and so I really like it when things are a little disruptive, fun and irreverent. It was nice that we got a chance within the very traditional industry of whisky to get behind the scenes, to subvert the seriousness that often goes into an advertising campaign and have fun with that. I hope that people get to see the short film and the full-length episodes – and enjoy them and share them around.”

Once Upon a Time in Scotland will roll out globally from January 28 spanning online video, connected TV, out-of-home formats, experiential, PR and social media. Six full-length episodes and an array of behind-the-scenes content will initially be available to view on glenmorangie.com, with the rest released throughout 2025.