On November 11, 2026, the 2.5-minute holiday spot “Joy Delivered” dropped this week, showcasing New Zealand actress Kate Laidler as the face of Amazon’s massive seasonal campaign.
For Laidler, the path to starring in a multi-million-dollar international campaign involved intense physical work and a rigorous audition process that spanned two countries.
- Kate Laidler secured the role of Joy through her Auckland-based agent Johnson & Laird after submitting a New Zealand-shot audition tape.
- The production required five straight days of physically demanding stunts and shooting before transitioning directly into a separate retail advertisement.
- The holiday spot features the Beatles’ “Golden Slumbers,” utilizing takes 1 through 3 and take 17 from the original Abbey Road sessions.
After producers at Amazon reviewed her initial tape, Laidler traveled to Sydney for final callbacks. She landed the job shortly after, stepping onto a set largely built by an incoming Australian crew alongside local New Zealand talent, the NZ Herald reported.
“It was very physically demanding. It was long days, big stunts,” Laidler told the NZ Herald, describing the intense five-day shoot that preceded her work on the retail component of the campaign.
The resulting ad, directed by Mark Molloy via production company Smuggler and created in-house, uses New Zealand’s dramatic landscapes to mimic a classic travel comedy scenario. In the spot, Joy faces a canceled flight due to heavy snow and relies on a series of transport methods—including a bus, a donkey, a penguin, and a reindeer—to reach her mother’s home.
The Amazon campaign arrives on the heels of another major screen credit for the actress. Laidler recently worked directly with Oscar nominee Florence Pugh in the New Zealand-shot series East of Eden.
“Working with her was just genuinely out of this world,” Laidler told the NZ Herald, noting that Pugh has been her favorite actor for years.
That experience, combined with a recent three-episode stint as a “faithful” on the reality television series The Traits New Zealand, helped solidify her confidence on professional sets. “Reality TV is just like an entire other world. There’s actually nothing like it,” she told the NZ Herald.
| Project | Role | Production Location |
|---|---|---|
| “Joy Delivered” (Amazon) | Joy (Lead) | New Zealand / Australia Crew |
| East of Eden | Supporting / Co-star | New Zealand |
| The Traitors New Zealand | Faithful (Contestant) | New Zealand |
While Laidler hopes her newfound global exposure from the Amazon campaign will help open doors for international acting work, she is also expanding behind the camera. She is currently writing and co-directing a short film titled Tummy Bug, which she describes as a chronic pain body horror project.
“We shot the first half, and now I get to switch into acting,” she told the NZ Herald.
The Amazon spot will continue running across television, digital platforms, social media, and cinema throughout the holiday season as part of the retailer’s broader strategy to emphasize community and generosity.
