Who Are The Actors In Rob Gronkowski's New FanDuel Commercials?
The NFL playoffs kick off this weekend, ushering in the race for Super Bowl commercial primacy. FanDuel is making an early bid for commercial glory with its Kick of Destiny ad campaign, starring retired Super Bowl-winning tight end Rob Gronkowski. The first Kick of Destiny television spot dropped on January 9 and stars Gronkowski and "Rocky" and "Predator" star Carl Weathers. More ads from the sports betting app's campaign will roll out in the next few weeks as the playoffs race tightens and are set to feature John Cena and NFL commentator Kay Adams.
FanDuel's first Kick of Destiny occurred at last year's Super Bowl LVII, where Gronkowski tried and failed to make a pre-kickoff field goal. Gronkowski is once again attempting the feat, this time in front of a live audience in Las Vegas. Fans can pick whether Gronk will make or miss the kick from the 25-yard-line, with eligible winners receiving an equal share of a $10 million bonus bet prize pool.
The first ad in the Kick of Destiny 2 cycle features a grizzled Gronkowski trekking through the desert. "Last Super Bowl, I missed the FanDuel Kick of Destiny, and it's haunted me ever since," he says in voiceover. A mysterious stranger — revealed to be Weathers — then pulls up in a motorcycle. "This time you won't miss," he says. "Get in."
John Cena will play a villain in the campaign
Over the next few weeks of football, FanDuel will unveil new chapters in the Kick of Destiny campaign. In an appearance on "Up & Adams" with Kay Adams, Rob Gronkowski revealed that the third ad, which is set to air during the third week of the playoffs, features a spirited training montage. Carl Weathers plays his coach, and the actor knows a thing or two about training montages — first from Apollo Creed's training sequence in "Rocky II," then as an experienced coach in "Happy Gilmore."
Wrestler-turned-movie star John Cena has yet to make his highly anticipated appearance in FanDuel's Kick of Destiny 2 ad campaign, but he is set to play the antagonist. "I rarely get to play the villain so I'm ready to fully embrace this role," Cena said in a press statement. "I remember watching Gronk's kick last year and am so excited to be working with a brand like FanDuel to make this sports moment more exciting for their fans, but do I think he's going to make it? No chance!"
The Kick of Destiny 2 pokes fun at Gronkowski's extra credit involvement in the Super Bowl commercial landscape. "Because it wasn't enough for me to do a normal Super Bowl commercial like all those other retired athletes," he says in the first commercial. "No, I had to be a big shot. A hero." More ads will roll out during the playoffs, with Gronk making his second Kick of Destiny ahead of Super Bowl LVIII on February 11.