Many movie stars in the world today kick started their careers by starring in TV commercials. Among the Hollywood bigwigs who honed their acting talents in advertisement are Keanu Reeves, Leonardo Di Caprio and Courteney Cox, among others.
New York-born actor Jonathan Goldsmith’s career took the opposite trajectory. He started acting as a pro in 1963, but it could be argued that it wasn’t until the late noughties that his career really took off.
In early 2007, he landed a commercial gig with the Mexican beer Dos Equis. He would replicate one character in multiple ads for the brand, work that he carried on till 2015. In the course of the campaign, Goldstein would become the best paid commercial character actor, while also earning the moniker “most interesting man in the world.”
The popularity of the artist’s work had a massive impact on Dos Equis’ business, as the beer reportedly saw a spike of up to 15.4% in sales in one year in the United States. At the same time, social media became awash with his face, as he is constantly used in various memes even to date.
How Did Jonathan Goldsmith Land The Dos Equis Commercial Gig?
When Dos Equis were looking for a character actor to fit into their new campaign, they made an audition call which ended up featuring hundreds of people. The candidates were each given one line that they had to deliver at the end of an improvised monologue: “…and that’s how I arm wrestled Fidel Castro.”
Goldsmith went over and above in his test, as he performed an improvisation set that went on for half an hour. “The auditions were held with hundreds of others, most of whom looked Latino,” he told Primer Magazine in a 2011 interview.
“I felt like I made somewhat of an impression when I took off one sock as a conversation opener and indeed finished the 30-minute improvisation with the casting director’s requested line ‘…and that’s how I arm wrestled Fidel Castro,” Goldsmith continued.
In a separate interview with Fox News nearly seven years later, Goldsmith would reveal that he based his character on his friend and sailing partner Fernando Lamas, an Argentine-American actor and director who passed away in 1982.
How Much Was Jonathan Goldsmith Paid For His Work In The Dos Equis Commercials?
As of 2022, Celebrity Net Worth estimates that Jonathan Goldsmith has amassed wealth valued at $8 million. But just how much of that did he make from his cameos in the various Dos Equis commercials?
At the height of his successful partnership with the Mexican brand, Goldsmith is said to have been raking in as much as $1 million annually. This is according to an account by The Hollywood Reporter, which at the same time reported that the actor was being sued by an agency that had previously represented him.
On the supposition that Goldsmith’s earnings remained standard throughout his tenure working with Dos Equis, he would have practically raked in the lion share of his current net worth from that one gig.
The suit against him was brought by Jordan Lee, Inc., who argued that they were responsible for helping him close the lucrative deal that skyrocketed his career.
In a heavily-worded statement, the agency said: “Had Goldsmith landed a role that more accurately portray[ed] his true character, he would have landed the role of ‘The Least Honorable Man in the Entertainment Business.”
Jonathan Goldsmith Does Not See His Dos Equis Commercials As His Most Important Work
As evidenced by Jonathan Goldsmith’s absolute fortune, acting roles in advertisements can be very rewarding for screen performers. As a case in point, Michael B. Jordan is said to have taken home a seven-figure payday for starring in an Alexa commercial in 2021.
While the riches and fame that the Dos Equis ads brought Goldsmith were much welcome in his life, he still insisted that they were never his most important work.
The 83-year-old has a long history of charity work, having partnered with organizations like Morris Animal Foundation, Free Arts for Abused Children and the Stella Link Foundation against sex trafficking in Cambodia.
In his Primer Magazine interview, Goldsmith said that such work carried more weight in his heart. “I’ve been fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with disabled and at-risk children since I was 18… A commercial does not top my other experiences one bit,” he explained. “My saving a man’s life on Mount Whitney in a snowstorm, saving a little girl from drowning in the ocean as well as a dog who fell through the ice is much more important to me.”