People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has launched its first-ever Super Bowl ad series, PETA: Mindful Mobsters (2025), directed by Macedonian filmmaker Angel Apostolski.
The ads, featuring mobster characters, draw parallels between organized crime and the treatment of cows and sheep in the leather and wool industries, which PETA describes as “dark and disturbing.”
“Even tough guys can’t stomach the cruelty and abuse that goes into leather jackets and wool sweaters,” said PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange in a statement.
The organization, citing industry investigations, said cows used for leather may be skinned and dismembered while still conscious, while sheep at wool farms—such as those in New Zealand—have been filmed being dragged, cut, and stitched up without painkillers.
PETA, whose motto states that “animals are not ours to wear,” promotes its Every Animal Is Someone campaign and offers free Empathy Kits for those who “need a lesson in kindness.”
Apostolski, born in Skopje in 1978, is a director known for commercials with cinematic storytelling. With Mindful Mobsters, he becomes one of the few European directors to helm a Super Bowl ad. His previous works include Citizen X (2004) and Projection (2002). A graduate of Sofia’s National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts, he is currently working on his first feature film.