Hamish Hamilton Reveals the High-Stakes Gamble Behind Bad Bunny's Super Bowl Show

Director Hamish Hamilton says the Bad Bunny halftime performance was his most precarious technical effort, relying on five cinema lenses with no backups.

Across a career that includes Super Bowl halftime shows, Oscar ceremonies and an Olympic opening, Hamish Hamilton admits the Bad Bunny performance was his most nerve-wracking technical undertaking. The team shot the show with five prime cinema lenses, equipment not intended for live broadcast and without any backup cameras, meaning any failure would have jeopardized the entire production. Hamilton highlighted Bad Bunny and creative director Harriet Cuddeford's focused concept, which celebrated Puerto Rican and broader Latin American culture through elaborate sets, a real on-stage wedding and appearances by Cardi B, Pedro Pascal, Karol G, Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin.

He also discussed the difficulty of balancing the visual experience for the stadium crowd versus the millions watching at home. Hamilton urged that creative directors receive Emmy recognition alongside television directors, emphasizing their partnership. Despite conservative backlash and a competing alternative halftime show organized by Kid Rock and Turning Point USA, Hamilton called the experience one of the most rewarding of his career.