It seems like every actor wants to reprise their older roles at the moment, and with nostalgic hits like Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and the upcoming Jurassic World: Dominion all making an impact with their returning stars, no one can blame them.With the need for nostalgia in new releases hitting an all-time high, Jim Carrey has become the latest star to turn back the clock and revive a character he hasn’t played for over 25 years. While most actors are bringing back their most popular characters though, Carrey has gone against trend and decided to reprise the role of his least loved role – Ernie “Chip” Douglas, aka The Cable Guy.
Just like Mike Myers, Carrey is getting back in touch with his old role for a Super Bowl ad that will be seen this Sunday during the U.S.’s biggest sporting event of the year. While Myers’ ad for GM, which sees him reprising the role of Dr. Evil from his highly successful Austin Powers movies, Carrey’s advertisement for Verizon’s 5G internet sees him returning to a role that was critically mauled and while not a flop was not the big moneyspinner it was expected to be.
Considering it arrived at a point Carrey was at the top of his comedy game, The Cable Guy was a surprising fall from grace for the rubber-faced actor when it was released in 1996, and while the film has picked up a bit of a cult following since, there is no denying that it certainly wasn’t in the same league as his other movies of the time. The film was directed by Ben Stiller and co-starred Matthew Broderick, who starred architect Steve Kovacs, a man who becomes the obsession of a cable TV installer. The film, in many ways, tried to take a small step away from the kind of pure slapstick that Carrey was known for, and it really failed to hit the mark because of that.
Jim Carrey Has Brought Back His Manic Persona Thanks to Sonic The Hedgehog
While his first prominent roles all delivered a manic form of comedy, in which bodily functions and pulling his face made up for a good portion of the script, following The Cable Guy, Jim Carrey mostly steered clear of the same kind of childish fiascos that made him his name. From the more subtle comedy of Liar, Liar, to his non-comedy roles in movies such as The Truman Show, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Man on the Moon, Carrey proved that there was more to him as an actor than just making his face contort hilariously. However, his recent appearance in Sonic The Hedgehog has reminded everyone that, in the right hands, that old manic Carrey style can still be worth the price of an admission ticket.
Although Carrey is reprising his Cable Guy role for an advertisement only, with him having already revisited early works like Dumb and Dumber, there is always a chance that he could take on the role of Chip Douglas once more in some form. Who knows, with a new direction and years of experience behind him, perhaps he could even manage to redeem the character if anyone was willing to take a punt on bringing him back in a larger capacity. In the meantime, you can will be able to catch the full advert during this weekend’s Super Bowl and online.