Think about your favorite TV show’s social media accounts.
You’ve scrolled through clip after clip of your favorite scenes on Instagram and TikTok. The biggest trailers rack up views on YouTube, while X and Threads serve as the home for real-time, text-based public conversation and instant reactions.
On the surface that may seem like all a TV show needs to run a successful social media campaign. But in reality, there’s one secret weapon that’s helping networks and streamers take their marketing to the next level: Snapchat.
When it comes to making campaigns stand out—and earn Emmys buzz—activating on Snapchat has become the insider move, opening up new ways for networks and streamers to capture attention.
That’s right. The social media platform that started as disappearing photo and video messages between friends has become the inside track to successful Hollywood campaigns.
But what is it that sets Snapchat apart? For starters, the low-lift informality of the platform has hooked the attention of Gen Z, a group that craves authenticity. Snapchat doesn’t call for the level of curation and planning that Instagram does, and that casualness is reflected in the app’s audience makeup. Snapchat reaches over 75% of the 13- to 34-year-old population in more than 25 countries. But it’s not only Gen Z on Snapchat. Nearly 1 in 4 Snapchatters are 35 or older. And Snapchat isn’t just big—it’s getting bigger. In Q2 of 2026, Snap reported 971 million global monthly active users, marking a 4% increase year-over-year.1
Now, 15 years after its launch, Snapchat has evolved into far more than just disappearing photos and videos. For TV shows, tools across the app create opportunities to turn entertainment into something audiences can experience, share and talk about. Sponsored Snaps in the Chat feed give entertainment marketers a native way to reach audiences in the same place they’re already talking with friends. Just as they would open a Snap from a friend, users can access teaser clips, BTS footage and more exclusive promo materials to drive tune in. Lenses are augmented reality effects capable of taking real-world imagery and transforming it, from a selfie Lens to an entire scene, while customizable avatars called Bitmojis allow for product integrations and digital fashion partnerships. On Snap Map, brands can embrace location marketing with Promoted Places, building out branded landmarks and events.
“Entertainment has always been about creating moments people want to talk about and share, and Snapchat gives marketers a unique opportunity to invite fans into those moments,” Snap Inc. Head of Media and Entertainment Laurel Duquette said in a statement. “Whether it’s stepping into the world of a favorite show through AR, getting an exclusive look of content via Sponsored Snaps in Chat, or bringing a live cultural moment to life in an unexpected way, we can help studios and networks turn audiences from viewers into participants. That’s especially powerful during awards season, and for us, breaking through means giving fans something they want to experience and share with the people closest to them.”
Snapchat has long partnered with HBO, and earlier this summer, the two brands collaborated to bring the world of Westeros to the streets of New York ahead of the premiere of the third season of House of the Dragon. But this in-real-life activation didn’t require any magic—just Snapchat’s augmented reality technology. The Times Square stunt used the first-ever four-sided Snapchat AR Mirror to capture footage of fans virtually wearing Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen’s crown. The footage was then projected onto Outfront’s billboards, giving fans the chance to not only see themselves in Westeros, but in Times Square, too.
This was just one piece in the larger House of the Dragon campaign on Snapchat, alongside AR Lenses, Sponsored Snaps and Snap Ads revealing teases of the upcoming season and behind-the-scenes footage. Back in 2022 ahead of the Season 1 premiere, Custom Landmarker Lenses saw dragons landing in tourist destinations around the globe, from Tower Bridge in London to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
But HBO and House of the Dragon aren’t the only network and series taking advantage of Snapchat’s boundary-pushing technology. Snapchat keeps drawing in TV shows—and big ones.
Netflix’s Stranger Things continued to evolve how it showed up on Snapchat over the course of the show’s five-season run. From character face Lenses to walking through an AR portal into the Byers’ living room, every time Stranger Things and Snapchat partnered, fans were given a completely immersive digital experience. For the show’s final season, Snapchat partnered with Chips Ahoy to create an AR-based game, giving fans the chance to search for limited-edition cookies in the Upside Down.
And earlier this year, Snapchat brought the magic of AR to Hulu’s Get Real House event with an AR Mirror that showcased top shows including The Kardashians, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and Dancing with the Stars. Many of Hulu’s biggest stars and Snap Stars engaged with the Lens, driving millions of earned impressions.
That’s the thing about Snapchat. It’s never the same thing twice. It’s more than just a one-off placement—it keeps fans coming back time and time again because every experience is wholly unique to the platform.
When it comes to awards season, Snapchat’s flexibility and versatility are its key advantages. For major titles with months-long campaigns, the augmented reality world is your digital oyster. Ambitious AR Lenses and multi-city digital rollouts can grab attention around the globe, as seen with House of the Dragon. But even titles with a shorter runway or live events like nominations, the red carpet, or the ceremony itself can get in on the action with quicker-turn Lenses built in days, not months.
It’s no secret there’s one thing that drives awards season: attention. And in the ever-changing social media landscape, that’s a luxury that is hard to come by—particularly when it comes to Gen Z. That’s why meeting fans where they already are is so important. Snapchat gives brands a direct line to fans, making it an increasingly valuable piece of the Hollywood marketing playbook.
