Carl Weathers is still going to get his shine on Super Bowl Sunday.
The actor, best known for his roles in sports films such as Apollo Creed in “Rocky” and Chubbs in “Happy Gilmore”, died earlier in the month from heart disease. Weathers was 76 years when he passed away at his residence in Florida.
Weathers has ties to the NFL. Before he broke onto the scene in Hollywood as an actor, he was a football player who suited up eight games in the league before making his way north of the border to the CFL.
He’s going to be featured during Super Bowl 58 as well. Before he died, it was announced that he was starring in a FanDuel commercial alongside former NFL tight end Rob Gronkowski.
Will there be any changes to the commercial? Here is what you need to know about the FanDuel ad:
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Carl Weathers Fan Duel commercial
For the most part, there are not going to be any significant changes to the commercial. Andrew Sneyd, FanDuel’s executive vice president of marketing, said he consulted members of Weathers’ family about the promo, adding that “the family has been very supportive that they would still like to see Carl in the work.”
The ad is going to same relatively the same as it was before Weather’s death, with some minor changes according to Variety.
“We need to change what we are doing in the Bowl,” Sneyd said. “The live event itself carries forward and as is. Rob will kick the field goal and he will be even more inspired to make it. He really enjoyed meeting Carl and found him to be such an optimistic and energetic person.
Will there are no changes to some aspects of the commercial, Sneyd said the lone alterations essentially come down to how Weathers is portrayed in the actual in-game ad.
“We had built a master. One is an edit if he makes the kick and we have an edit if he misses,” Sneyd said. “That content we had in those masters wouldn’t be appropriate for us to do any more. Since the news of Carl’s passing came, we have been working with editors to help us get back to something that does make sense.”
Here is a preview of the FanDuel commercial with Gronkowski for the “Kick of Destiny 2” promotion at Super Bowl 58.
Carl Weathers NFL career
Weathers played collegiate football at San Diego State, then signed as an undrafted free agent with the Raiders in 1970. In two seasons with the Raider, he appeared in eight games — seven in the 1970 season and one in the following season.
After he was released by the Raiders, Weathers joined the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League. He played 18 games in total before he elected to retire from football in 1974.
Carl Weathers acting career
While Weathers was playing football, he began his acting career, working as an extra on several films. He got his first significant roles in the mid-70s.
Weathers starred in a number of sports films. He is perhaps best known for his role as Creed in the “Rocky” movie franchise, starring in the first four films. He also played Chubbs Peterson, the caddy of Sandler’s titular character in “Happy Gilmore.”
The actor also starred in action shows and films as well, playing Colonel Al Dillon in “Predator” and Greef Karga in the “Stars Wars” series “The Mandalorian.” For his role as Karga, Weathers earned an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.
