Sam Elliott is known for his rich, baritone voice and cowboy persona, so it should come as no surprise that he delivers a downright inspiring recitation of Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus’ smash hit “Old Town Road.” Elliott recites lyrics from the song in a 2020 Doritos Super Bowl ad.
The ad from the NFL’s big game features Elliott in all his “The Stranger” from The Big Lebowski glory.
“I got the horses in the back, horse tack is attached. Hat is matte black, got the boots that’s black to match,” Elliott says in his iconic drawl, as shown days before the Super Bowl Sunday in a teaser video. “Can’t nobody tell me nothin’.”
In the Doritos Super Bowl commercial, Elliott faces off with the rapper in an epic Wild West dance-off — at the Cool Ranch, cleverly– that even incorporates Elliott’s iconic mustache. Keep an eye out for a Billy Ray Cyrus cameo at the end of the Old West showdown.
An actor known for scads of beloved western roles as well as his appearance in the film A Star is Born (2018) and on the Netflix series The Ranch, Elliott co-starred in Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone prequel, 1883, alongside country music power couple Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. Paramount+’s 1883 will be followed in Sheridan’s timeline by 1883: The Bass Reeves Story, which stars Dennis Quaid and tells the story of a legendary US Marshall.
“Old Town Road” gained massive popularity on the social media app Tik Tok in 2019. The song went viral, racking up over 23 million views on YouTube. The song hit No. 1 on Billboard Hot 100. The song two 2020 Grammy Awards for the song: Best Pop Duo/ Group Performance and Best Music Video.
Sam Elliott is Latest Actor From ‘Yellowstone’ Universe to Earn Major Award Nod
The Taylor Sheridan universe is fairing much better during awards season than it has in years past. Following Kevin Costner’s nomination and win at the Golden Globes for Best Actor in a TV Series — Drama and the series’ two nods at the upcoming Critics Choice Awards (one for Kelly Reilly for Best Actress in a Drama Series and one for Best Drama Series), Sam Elliott has been nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series for his work in the Yellowstone prequel series 1883.
Elliott will compete against Steve Carell (The Patient), Taron Egerton (Black Bird), Paul Walter Hauser (Black Bird) and Evan Peters (Dahmer — Monster: The Jefferey Dahmer Story). Voted on by the SAG-AFTRA union (nominees are determined by nominating committees made up of randomly selected members of the SAG-AFTRA union), the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards are often considered a reflection of industry buzz, so Elliott’s nomination could be a bellwether for the actor’s Emmy chances.
Though he’s up against some tough competition, including Peters, who took home the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Limited Series, Elliott’s powerful performance as haunted Civil War veteran Shea Brennan was critically acclaimed and has a great chance of earning more accolades for the legendary actor.
Though he starred in the Yellowstone prequel, which premiered in 2021 and co-starred Tim McGraw, Faith Hill and Isabel May, Elliott has admitted that he’s never been much of a fan of the show that spawned 1883. During an interview on the WTF With Marc Maron podcast, the actor admitted that he doesn’t watch Yellowstone, adding that he felt it was a bit too much like another show about a wealthy ranching family.
“I’m not a Yellowstone fan. I don’t watch Yellowstone,” Elliott stated. “I love Costner, there’s a lot of good people on the cast, a few of them I’ve worked with before — nothing against any of them — but it’s just too much like f—ing ‘Dallas’ or something for me.”
As for the other nominees, Jessica Chastain earned a nod for her role as Tammy Wynette in the limited series George & Tammy. She’s up against Julia Garner (Inventing Anna), Niecy Nash-Betts (Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story), Amanda Seyfried (The Dropout) and Emily Blunt (The English).
Austin Butler continues his hot streak of nominations for Elvis, competing against Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin), Brendan Fraser (The Whale), Bill Nighy (Living) and Adam Sandler (Hustle) for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role.