Robert DeNiro
Some say he’s sold out, others may say the Hollywood star’s advertising career is the perfect way to preserve his legacy
Few living actors have starred in as many cult films as Robert De Niro. Therefore, the man can teach us several lessons about the value of inheritance. Because when you’ve spent the last half-decade being the public image of some of the most iconic cultural moments, how do you reconcile that as a person? Do you keep working even when you risk weakening the power of your best work? Are you retiring, a professional legend but perhaps personally unfulfilled? It’s a dilemma.
But perhaps Robert De Niro has found the perfect third way. Here is an 80-year-old man who has discovered the ideal method to continue acting while reminding the world of the power of his deepest characters: advertising.
Bun of a lifetime: Robert De Niro’s advert for Warburtons bagels is his best work in years
You will, of course, have seen the ad that De Niro did two years ago for the British industrial bakery Warburtons, in which he attacked his Goodfellas character so aggressively that the name of the ad was literally GoodBagels – even though it was a fleet of Scientists would never make it as a pun. At the time, some accused De Niro of selling out. If anything, it might have been the beginning of a new era because right now, ladies and gentlemen, De Niro is doing a commercial for Uber. Because he was once in a movie called Taxi Driver and Uber is a taxi. Isn’t that wonderful?
Not much is known about the new commercial, other than that it will be filmed in London and that De Niro will repeat his iconic “You talkin’ to me?” line and that a source close to the commercial thinks it’s “a great idea.” And is that really not enough?
We don’t know the plot of the ad yet, but you suspect it will go in one of two directions. In both cases, De Niro drives around in an Uber. In the first case, the ugly behavior of his passengers drives him to a point of misanthropic rage, which he ultimately takes out on the world with a bloodthirsty downvoting rampage. Second, given the comparative comfort and quality of life offered to Uber drivers, he’s happy to drive them around because he works for a company that gives him the time and space to take care of his mental health. In both cases, he wants to know whether someone is talking to him.
De Niro in Taxi Driver. Photo: Columbia/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock
It’s awesome, isn’t it? Not only does De Niro receive a salary that must be an extraordinary amount of money for little work, it also shows how much he keeps an eye on the culture. Because who has the time to watch an entire movie these days? Hardly anyone, unless they manage to maintain their interest by scrolling through Instagram on their phone at the same time. Also, the taxi driver is old. Who on earth wants to watch old things when the world is full of shiny new things like Shazam 2 or Is It Cake? Yuck.
So we should really praise De Niro here for the valuable service he provides to the world. Ultimately, he distilled a long and complex film down to its essentials, namely a man asking someone if he’s talking to him. Now, when some dim-witted movie nerd corners you and asks if you’ve seen “Taxi Driver,” you can draw on your knowledge of the Uber commercial and answer, “Yes, it’s the movie about the 80-year-old.” Man in London.” Year 2023 who keeps asking people if they’re talking to him or not,” and the nerd will say, “Yeah, that’s right,” and leave you alone.
Robert De Niro at 80: his best films
In fact, we should probably encourage Robert De Niro to do more like this. Much of his filmography remains untouched by the glorious hand of advertising. For example, he didn’t do an ad based on Raging Bull, which seems a shame when there’s literally already a product named after cattle doing something. Is the world ready for Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull 2: Laughing Cow? I assume the answer is almost certainly yes.
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