To recreate Burt Reynolds’ iconic portrayal of “Smokey and the Bandit” a few things are required. First and foremost is a killer ‘stache. Then a wicked cowboy hat. And of course a sleek black Trans-Am.
Tony Stewart: If you don’t like ‘Smokey and the Bandit’ homage ‘kiss our ass’
In true Bandit fashion, Tony Stewart has a message for those who may not like his “Smokey and the Bandit” videos.
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
All of these elements and more are prevalent in a new video series with Tony Stewart -- nicknamed “Smoke” -- as the Bandit. The videos feature a cavalcade of NASCAR personalities and are part of a Mobil1 advertisement, and if you don’t enjoy them, well...
“We don’t care if it’s received well or not, we had fun doing it,” Stewart said jokingly Thursday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “If they don’t like it, they can kiss our ass.”
The videos -- six in total -- will be released over a three-week period through March with the first episode debuting this past week. And the genesis of the idea of paying to “Smokey and the Bandit” came as a result of the original movie being one of Stewart’s favorites.
“(Mobil 1) always want to do something fun, something we are all going to enjoy,” Stewart said. “And they asked me what my favorite movie was just in conversation one day and I said it’s always been ‘Smokey and the Bandit.’ I didn’t hear anything else about it, and then they came back to me with this.”
Stewart said he and three buddies have a tradition where they watch “Smokey and the Bandit” every year before vacationing and would recite lines to one another constantly. The three-time Cup champion even owns a black Trans-Am similar to the one in the film, and has on his bucket list meeting Reynolds to discuss to the 1977 cult classic.
In addition to Stewart, the Mobil videos showcase Darrell Waltrip (Snowman), Ricky Craven (Big Enos), Hermie Sadler (Lil’ Enos), Jeff Hammond (Sheriff Buford T Justice), and Nicole Briscoe (Frog).
“We all had the same level of discomfort doing it,” Stewart said. “But every time you’d see one of the guys who we were shooting with come out of makeup, you’d almost cry laughing,” Stewart said. “It was hysterical to see.”
See More:
