"Diff'rent Strokes" actor pleads guilty to a lesser charge, landing him a fine, classes, and possible jail time
Spade Regrets Doing DirecTV Ad With Farley
"I wouldn't want anyone to get a whiff that I'm trying to get something off Chris."
If he had to do it again, David Spade wouldn’t agree to hawking DirecTV alongside a scene with his late friend Chris Farley from “Tommy Boy.”
"I wouldn't want anyone to get a whiff that I'm trying to get something off Chris," he told People magazine.
The 30-second commercial, which played during the world series, has been chided by some critics as being tasteless. In it, Farley does his famous “Fat Boy in a Little Coat” routine from the 1995 movie while Spade, inserted into the scene by technology, promotes the satellite service.
In the ad, Spade says, "Great, I'm here with tons of fun, when I could be at home with my DirecTV ... But no, I'm stuck with either cable or that (pointing to Farley). It never gets old.”
Defamer tagged the ad "bad advertising," calling Spade and the holders of Farley's estate as "sleazebags."
Entertainment Weekly wrote that they "can’t decide if this is a sweet homage to a sexy moment or semi-disrespectful exploitation of the dead."
Asked Film Junk: “When it comes to advertising, are there any lines that shouldn’t be crossed, or are there things that shouldn’t be done in order to sell a product?”
Spade expressed “slight shock” that anyone would find the ad offensive.
"These commercials are cool,” he told People. “They're well done. They're clever. And that they would include “Tommy Boy” in that company, I thought was very flattering."
"Oh, my God if [Farley] was here, I guarantee he'd be stoked that this little movie is included," he said. "The movie is important to me, and I would hate to offend [anyone] because that's one of my favorite things I've ever done. So I would apologize to someone who took it that way."
The commercial series also included scenes from “Back to the Future” and “Aliens.”


Comments
KE Smith Says
I found another couple videos that sum it up for me! Check em out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YiyFk2GuPM & http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEMg90MgNbg - Enjoy!!
KE Smith Says
Hey Dish Network, you should one-up Direct and start filming (Lohan, Winehouse) ads now. They'll probably be hot commodities for the dead-celeb pitch soon enough. I found this related video on Youtube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk1R0z8fcVk, I think they agree!
Lynnie Says
I think people are filtering this commercial through their individual sensibilities rather than David's, which isn't fair. I worked with David briefly but closely a few years back; Chris had been gone quite a while by then. David would make brief mentions about his friend - not in the manner of a hanger-on clinging to the past, as some are claiming, but in that affectionate, spontaneous way we all talk about people we loved who'd passed away and whom we wish to keep alive somehow: a funny story, paraphrasing a quote, a situation that brings forth a memory.
I was out with David when a group of fans ran over and he had a funny interaction with them; he said to me in passing as we walked away, "That's what Chris always used to do." David's also maintained a close longtime relationship with the Farley brothers (and if I'm not mistaken, he's been very supportive of their careers). The few times they dropped by our project and everyone kicked back, there were always occasional funny references to Chris as well.
I don't claim to know David well and haven't seen him since that project, but I'd bet that he saw the commercial as a lighthearted way to remember Chris's talent and charm. One last note: the Farley brothers were fun and sweet and David was an absolute delight to work with.