When George Lucas figured out how to make a killing by exploiting the merchandising and licensing market for Star Wars, he probably didnt actually appreciate what an enormous impact he would make on the movie business. For todays blockbuster properties the licensing and merchandising strategies are as important as the properties themselves and in many cases they are actually more so. Hundreds of millions of dollars can be made by taking an iconic character out of their original universe, and placing into our everyday consumer reality. Quite frankly the process is cynical, it is frustrating, and at times it is utterly devastating. For pop culture aficionados the world over, the sight of their favourite characters and entertainment icons slumming it in the real world can be incredibly depressing - even if the end results can actually be admittedly pretty funny. These commercials are twelve of the worst offenders. These commercials all take an iconic figure that is loved the world over, and then places them in an ad that makes you wonder just how cynical the film business can be.