Which NFL player became the face of Nike's 'Dream Crazy' campaign?

Colin Kaepernick became the face of Nike’s “Dream Crazy” campaign.

Nike unveiled the campaign in 2018 as part of the 30th anniversary of “Just Do It.” Kaepernick appeared in the campaign’s central imagery and narrated the accompanying film, which encouraged athletes to pursue ambitious goals even when others considered them unrealistic. The campaign’s theme was summarized by the line “It’s only crazy until you do it.”

Kaepernick was a former San Francisco 49ers quarterback who had begun kneeling during the U.S. national anthem in 2016 to protest racial injustice and police brutality. Nike’s decision to feature him connected the advertisement’s message of conviction and sacrifice with his public activism, making the campaign unusually prominent beyond sports advertising.

Serena Williams, LeBron James, and other athletes also appeared in the film or broader campaign materials, which can cause confusion about the answer. They were featured participants, but Kaepernick was the campaign’s principal face and narrator. The advertisement generated both criticism and strong support, and it later won an Emmy.