Leo Burnett's Golden Run: Populist Creativity Rewarded on the World Stage

At this year’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Leo Burnett struck creative gold — twice — with standout work for Škoda, alongside additional recognition for their consistently sharp thinking on McDonald’s. The accolades not only affirm the agency’s mastery of populist storytelling, but also validate a creative proposition that refuses to treat effectiveness and boldness as mutually exclusive. These weren’t speculative pieces or self-serving side projects. These were real campaigns, for real briefs, on real brands. And they won.

For chief creative officer Mark Elwood and his team, Cannes is not the goal, but a gratifying by-product of a clearly defined creative philosophy: Populist Creativity that helps brands grow. The Škoda "Reddit Edit" campaign, a socially led idea rooted in internet culture and authenticity, exemplified the kind of work that can resonate with both consumers and juries. Likewise, McDonald’s “McRib Mistakes” and “The Meal” were unapologetically mainstream, smartly executed, and creatively adventurous, proof that big brands can still make brave moves.

Leo's recent haul in Cannes is more than just a moment of industry recognition; it reflects the culmination of years of consistent creative reinvention, most recently under Elwood’s stewardship. It’s a creative department that now walks a little taller, energised by proof that doing the right work the right way really does pay off — not just in client results, but on the biggest stage our industry offers.

So we asked Elwood to reflect on what Cannes success means for his team, how a long-standing client relationship like Škoda can unlock fearless ideas, and why creative naivety — especially in the age of AI — might just be the key to the next chapter of commercial creativity.

What does it mean to a creative department to win in Cannes? Does it make any difference to how you approach things as a team?

Cannes is the most difficult show to win at and for some of the creatives involved this year it’s their first Lion. For one of those creatives, it’s been a 20-year wait, so as you can imagine, it means a hell of a lot to them. For the department, hopefully it makes everyone walk taller and encourages others to do the same next year, I want the department feeling like they want to win. I also want them all to celebrate our collective success. Our creative department is built on collaboration, so we all win (and lose) together.

Winning this year though doesn’t change our approach to the work. Our approach will always be through the lens of our proposition; Populist Creativity that helps brands grow. We want to do our best work on our biggest brands and on live briefs. Cannes isn’t driving our agenda; our clients’ briefs and business problems are. If winning a Cannes Lion comes out of that process, then great. Škoda 'Reddit Edit', McDonald’s 'McRib Mistakes' and McDonald’s 'The Meal' [the three winners] were all responses to briefs with their own challenges, we answered them in the best way we thought possible. It's lovely that the juries recognised the work and that Populist Creativity can win.

And how does winning affect you as a creative leader? Does it give you more confidence or license to push the bar higher, for example?

Winning this year is a mixed bag of emotions, to be honest. I’m very happy for the team and for Andy and Jim, my brilliant ECD’s. But you do immediately start thinking about next year, can you do the same again, or even better? I feel we’ve been steadily raising the creative bar at Leo’s for the last five years. And winning this year at Cannes does validate that. It also shows we’re capable of more, so I’ll be pushing for that in 2026. More award-winning work across all of our clients, channels, and for work that the UK and beyond sees.

You won two Golds for your work with Skoda. Are there any notable ingredients in your relationship with Skoda that foster such award-winning creativity?

We’ve worked with Škoda for three decades, it’s a trusting, honest, and creatively challenging partnership. There was a significant step-change about two years ago when we won the social business too. This allowed us to create campaigns that started socially first with more freedom. ‘The Reddit Edit’, which picked up Gold in the Social and Creator category, is a byproduct of that freedom. The team that runs that account are all brilliant practitioners, they love the brand and our clients, it’s personal for them, and it shows in the work. The push for better and more challenging creative work flows both ways in that team, we’re pushing, and so are our clients, which we 100 per cent appreciate.

And did you come back from Cannes with any provocations or thoughts on the future of commercial creativity?

I made sure to attend some good talks at Cannes; I was mainly hanging around, listening to anything that involved AI. I’m fascinated by it and what it can bring to our industry, both creatively and commercially. I’m enjoying feeling out of my depth with new tools, learning a new way of thinking, and creating work. Naivety can lead to great creative thinking; you don’t see the barriers when you’re naïve, only the opportunities. I’d like it to stay that way.