A certain portion of the internet was set ablaze last week by an Instagram post from celebrity chef Guy Fieri.
The Food Network star and mayor of Flavortown is instantly recognizable thanks to his frosted tips, colorful bowling shirts, distinctive goatee and blinged-out look. But in the Instagram video, he traded in the bleach blonde spikes and goatee for a clean-shaven and basic brown dad hairdo, and the bowling shirt for an understated button-down and slacks.
“After so many years celebrating my birthday as Guy, I figured I would celebrate it as just a guy,” he said in the video, which garnered news coverage from outlets like Page Six and InStyle. Some Instagram users speculated that Fieri used AI to create the alter ego, which made him almost unrecognizable.
But The Hollywood Reporter can confirm that the basic new look is not actually part of a midlife makeover for Fieri; it is in fact a tee-up for a Super Bowl commercial for Bosch. The appliance maker released a teaser trailer Monday featuring both “classic” Guy Fieri and “Justaguy” Fieri.
While the actual commercial itself will have to wait for Super Bowl Sunday, the Bosch teaser is another example of brands leaning on star power and unexpected humor to stand out in the weeks ahead of the game.
With commercials costing $8 million for 30 seconds on NBC, brands like Bosch want to get the most bank for their buck. And the news cycle inspired by Fieri’s reveal is exactly the sot of buzz they would be looking for (he has been somewhat low-key since tearing his quad in an on-set accident late last year)
In other words, don’t expect Justaguy Fieri to stick around for the next season of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. In fact, don’t expect to see him again after Feb. 8.
