Remember those “I’m a Mac and I’m a PC” ads? Well, replace both John Hodgman and Justin Long with Ashton Kutcher and insert the new line “I’m here to sell you a PC, and also a movie about the guy who made Macs” and you’re on the right path.
According to the NY Post, Kutcher is close to signing a deal with PC makers Lenovo – a deal that will involve Kutcher appearing in a series of advertisements for Lenovo computers. It’s also a deal that will net Kutcher $10 million, or so says the Post. Considering that Kutcher has been a pitchman for Nikon cameras, and is a noted tech-investor, it shouldn’t really surprise you that he would sign on to push computers.
What makes this interesting, however, is that Kutcher has already filmed a movie in which he portrays iconic Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
Is this some kind of marketing genius? Subversive advertising where a Steve Jobs-like figure tries to sell you PCs? Interesting, Lenovo.
Jobs is the movie, and it’s slated to premiere on August 16th – which is actually a lot later than it was supposed to hit theaters. The film premiered back in January at the Sundance Film Festival and received mixed reviews. The film was supposed to open on April 19th but was pushed back in order to benefit from an additional marketing push.
Here’s what you can expect:
“JOBS details the major moments and defining characters that influenced Steve Jobs on a daily basis from 1971 through 2001. The film plunges into the depths of his character, creating an intense dialogue-driven story that is as much a sweeping epic as it is an immensely personal portrait of Steve Jobs’ life.”
Recently, Kutcher took to Quora to talk about why he decided to take on the iconic role of Steve Jobs.
“It was a perfect convergence in my craft and my interests. I’ve spent the last 5 years working with early stage technology companies as an investor and advisor. Whenever you take on a role, it’s like a crash course in the subject matter of the film. So while researching the role I was able to spend countless hours studying tech design, product, and history. It also afforded me the opportunity to meet with several of Steve’s peers who happen to be icons of the tech world,” he said.
Maybe one of those interests involves pitching Lenovo products? It’s unlikely that Kutcher’s role in any future advertising would even remotely be tied to Steve Jobs – but hey, it’s an interesting thought, right?