Then and Now: Actors (and their Voices) in Commercials

[rallymantis]

On 2/21/2017 at 5:06 PM, Milburn Stone said:

@rallymantis, the two voices do sound very similar, but my expectation is that Geico would have an exclusivity agreement with their gecko-guy, especially as it pertains to other clients in the "financial services sector." (Which this one is.)

I'm sure you're right.  And there's just *enough* of a difference in cadence (duh, 2 different countries) that if I concentrate...

...eh, still confuses the crap outta me.

[ari333]

I recognize voices, but I cant put a name to them and it makes me crazy . :-)

One time I knew a voice. It finally occurred to me that it was "Roz" from Frasier. If it wasn't her, it sure sounded like her.

Another time I finally figured out the voice was "Peg" from Married with Children. I have trouble placing the face and name with the voice sometimes. .

[peacheslatour]

I just realized that it's Susan Sarandon VO on those Tylenol ads.

[Haleth]

Yup, which is why I won't buy Tylenol.  I'm very pissed off at SS.

[peacheslatour]

Why?

[attica]

I recently learned that Chris Pine is the VO dude for BMW. Which is good, since it's been driving me crazy for a while. And for the longest time, I was wondering if Piven was voicing Mazda (but it was one of those almost, not quite feelings), and have learned it's Aaron Paul.

[janie jones]

The obnoxious "when you were you" guy is Aaron Paul?

[SmithW6079]

I think Fred Savage is doing voiceovers for car commercials now. I forget which one, but it's Toyota or Honda.

Edited March 22, 2017 by SmithW6079

[Silver Raven]

 I kept thinking that was Judi Dench doing the narration of the Zostavax ad, but I finally got around to checking and it's Rachel Izen, Broadway actress.

[attica]

On 3/17/2017 at 7:39 PM, janie jones said:

The obnoxious "when you were you" guy is Aaron Paul?

Yep. Now that I know this, I really want him to add a '...yo, bitch!' to his pitch. Or at least throw in a reference to Magnets!

Unless my ears deceive me, that's Mila Jovovich voicing the Fiat "Guilia".

[AimingforYoko]

Lily from AT&T (Milana Vayntrub) Is movin' on up. She's just been cast as Doreen Green, aka Squirrel Girl.

Marvel casts its Squirrel Girl.

That's pretty good casting. I just hope she can actually act.

[theatremouse]

1 hour ago, AimingforYoko said:

Lily from AT&T (Milana Vayntrub) Is movin' on up. She's just been cast as Doreen Green, aka Squirrel Girl.

Marvel casts its Squirrel Girl.

That's pretty good casting. I just hope she can actually act.

She was on This is Us for the better part of its first season. If your questioning if she can actually act were coming from a place of only having seen her in AT&T ads, there's a fairly decent sample size of other work in series.

[ABay]

Not exactly acting, but she's fantastic on @midnight. She's hilarious and I always look forward to her appearances.

[mmecorday]

Squirrel Girl sounds like something you would read about in the Weekly World News.

[ennui]

6 minutes ago, mmecorday said:

Squirrel Girl sounds like something you would read about in the Weekly World News.

Squirrel Girl and Bat Boy are dating! Exclusive!

For voice overs, I like Sam Elliott for Dodge Ram trucks. 

[docmatt]

Juno's dad seems so much happier selling insurance than teaching drums. :)

[spiderpig]

Sorry if this has already been addressed, but I just heard an Infiniti spot that sounds like David Duchovny, and I'm banging my head on the wall.

"Help me, ptv - you're my only hope."

Edited August 23, 2017 by spiderpig
spelling

[Jamoche]

5 hours ago, spiderpig said:

Sorry if this has already been addressed, but I just heard an Infiniti spot that sounds like David Duchovny, and I'm banging my head on the wall.

"Help me, ptv - you're my only hope."

ispot says no, unless it just hasn't been tagged yet: https://www.ispot.tv/topic/actor-actress/nM/david-duchovny

https://www.ispot.tv/brands/Aty/infiniti

But he is doing the voiceover for Pedigree dog ads.

[Prevailing Wind]

I always thought it was clever of Dentastix to get Duchovny to do their ads, since the doggie treat is X-shaped.

[ikmccall]

Pistachio commercial with the elephant in the elevator?  The elephant is voiced by John Cena.

[garyZ]

On 12/10/2016 at 3:50 PM, ennui said:

I can't see the video, but I believe Allison Janney does the Kaiser ads.

She was for a long time, and maybe still is in the radio ads, but there's a new-ish ad on TV (MeTV frequently) with a blonde woman who is really excellent - good read, pleasant voice.  I figure she must be an actress, but I don't think I've seen her before (or I don't recognize her).

[Shriekingeel]

Mucus from Mucinex sounds a little different to my ear. Has T.J. Miller already been fired from that gig?

[mojoween]

Could they have made the change that quickly?

Or would it simply be a matter of overdubbing existing ads in some studio somewhere and sending that out to the networks this week?

[Trini]

So it looks like Allstate is bringing back Mayhem (Dean Winters) for 2018.

[SmithW6079]

This is driving me crazy -- the new TurboTax with the black box taking a photo of a receipt -- who is the voice actor? He sounds so familiar. 

[stillhere1900]

Not sure if this is the right thread but I just saw Melanie Paxson in another commercial.

This one is for Dish TV

[Twilight Man]

On 6/1/2015 at 11:50 AM, jbrecken said:

What do we think about Darrell Hammond's Colonel Sanders?

 

On 8/27/2015 at 4:12 PM, jbrecken said:

Looks like KFC is now using Norm MacDonald as the Colonel.

Quote

Norm McDonald is out, Jim Gaffigan is in as the new Col. Sanders. I'm kind of liking the bit.

and now ............ Reba McEntire

which means two years from now, the Colonel will be portrayed either by Ah-Nuld, David Hasselhoff, or the Energizer Bunny.

[elle]

On 2/4/2018 at 10:23 AM, SmithW6079 said:

This is driving me crazy -- the new TurboTax with the black box taking a photo of a receipt -- who is the voice actor? He sounds so familiar. 

ispot.tv is usually a good place to look up the actors for commercials.  Unfortunately, they do not have anyone listed for this commercial, but now you know it is called "The Dark".  Check back once in a while, they may add the credit.

I enjoy hearing the word kerfuffle!

[SmithW6079]

13 hours ago, elle said:

ispot.tv is usually a good place to look up the actors for commercials.  Unfortunately, they do not have anyone listed for this commercial, but now you know it is called "The Dark".  Check back once in a while, they may add the credit.

I enjoy hearing the word kerfuffle!

Thanks. I think it's Matt Cook, who plays Lowell on "Man With a Plan."

[Shriekingeel]

Is that 80s character actor Everett McGill for Lexus?

[Milburn Stone]

I'm always amused by the soundalikes that agencies get for radio spots instead of the celeb voiceovers who do the same campaigns on TV. (Radio generally has tighter production schedules which may not suit the star talent's availability, plus there might be a ton of radio to a relatively small amount of TV which would make the talent cost skyrocket, plus some stars don't want to do radio because it's not as prestigious.) Jon Hamm is still doing Mercedes on TV, but on radio, it's Guy Who Was Cast Because He's Able to Sound Unbelievably Like Jon Hamm.

Edited February 24, 2018 by Milburn Stone

[David Zak]

Is the gal who does the Toyota ads where she's the showroom greeter pregnant again?  I remember back a few years ago she was expecting.

[janie jones]

I was wondering the same thing.  She looks like she's wearing a maternity shirt in the commercial I saw recently.

[Silver Raven]

I am so tired of those home security ads with Danny White.  They've been running for years now.

[Trini]

On 3/14/2018 at 9:01 AM, David Zak said:

Is the gal who does the Toyota ads where she's the showroom greeter pregnant again?  I remember back a few years ago she was expecting.

Yeah, it seems this time they're not trying to hide it.

[amass]

Is the son in this xfinity commercial played by Robin Lord Taylor? Ispot doesn’t say (that’s me asking in the comments lol)

 

https://ispot.tv/a/w8Po

Edited April 10, 2018 by amass

[janie jones]

It looks like him, but I don't think it is him.

[peacheslatour]

On 2/9/2018 at 7:03 PM, Twilight Man said:

 

and now ............ Reba McEntire

which means two years from now, the Colonel will be portrayed either by Ah-Nuld, David Hasselhoff, or the Energizer Bunny.

I want the next one to be the Count from Sesame Street.

[Browncoat]

1 hour ago, peacheslatour said:

I want the next one to be the Count from Sesame Street.

Ten!  A Ten-piece bucket!  Ha ha ha! 

[Silver Raven]

Is that Matthew McConaughey doing the announcing in the Carl's Jr. ads, or just somebody who sounds like him?

[cpcathy]

I'm pretty sure it's him. He even sings in one. I wish he wouldn't.

[QQQQ]

Had to do a double-take at Aubrey Plaza in the T-Mobile commercial - she's gorgeous!

Edited June 27, 2018 by QQQQ
Because Audrey and Aubrey are different names, but now I want to know if anyone has ever given twins these names...

[riley702]

Those would be cute "twin names".

[Reality police]

New to Commercials, what does everyone think about the Doritos commercials with Jean-Claude Van Dam? I think they are silly but I give him credit for wearing the bridesmaids dress. 

https://ispot.tv/a/wQXe

Edited July 6, 2018 by Reality police
Added link, yeah, first time, hope I got it right! Don't judge, I'm old.

[topanga]

I just saw Ray Liotta on a Chantix commercial. He was talking very slowly, and his speech cadence was off—he emphasized words in the sentences in a weird way. In fact, he sounds just like the character he plays on J. Lo’s show “Shades of Blue.”

When did he start talking like this in real life? It’s hard to believe this is the same guy with the upbeat voice from “Goodfellas” and “Corrina, Corrina.” 

Is it just age and heavy smoking? Or has he had health problems? 

[Prevailing Wind]

If he's on Chantix... I knew a woman who had just turned her life around. Everything was  going great but for her smoking. She tried Chantix & blew her brains out in her car.

[HighMaintenance]

On 7/28/2018 at 7:18 PM, topanga said:

I just saw Ray Liotta on a Chantix commercial. He was talking very slowly, and his speech cadence was off—he emphasized words in the sentences in a weird way. In fact, he sounds just like the character he plays on J. Lo’s show “Shades of Blue.”

When did he start talking like this in real life? It’s hard to believe this is the same guy with the upbeat voice from “Goodfellas” and “Corrina, Corrina.” 

Is it just age and heavy smoking? Or has he had health problems? 

For several years he looks like he had some bad plastic surgery or major dermabrasion done.  His skin is way too shiny.  He also moves his mouth like he either had a stroke or facial surgery did some nerve damage.

[Silver Raven]

Jason Alexander is the new Colonel Sanders

[QQQQ]

Almost didn't recognize Chris Noth in the Home2Go commercial. Guess that's what happens when my familiarity with the actor is based on roles from 20+ years ago (30+ if I count his blink-and-you'll-miss-it Baby Boom appearance, which I happened to watch again just last night).

[smittykins]

Wink Martindale and McLean Stevenson appear in this late 60s/early 70s VW ad: