In a disturbing development that has left computer nerds all over social media shaken, Justin Long has apparently jumped ship after a lengthy career as the “I’m a Mac” guy for Apple. The actor now stars in a series of ads for Intel where he announces himself as “I’m a Justin” and claims to be just a “normal person” comparing PCs to Macs, and noticeably not choosing the latter. In the new promotional spots, Long touts PCs for being able to bend into a tablet and having built-in touchscreens while dunking on his former employer when it comes to gaming. “Nobody games on a Mac,” Long states in one of the ads.
While Long is obviously an actor who can take any gig he pleases, people couldn’t help but crack jokes about his seeming betrayal of Apple and how quickly he got into bed with a rival.
I haven’t been this fake UPSET in at least a day! How dare you, @justinlong , betray an enormous corporation !!!! https://t.co/CnFgOD8m2Q
— Jim Gaffigan (@JimGaffigan) March 17, 2021
Imagine referring to Justin Long as “Apple’s I’m a Mac” guy lmao https://t.co/Ji6VDA76bB
— Samuel Vincent (@HiPleaseHydrate) March 17, 2021
First the Verizon guy and now Justin Long. These hoes ain’t loyal. pic.twitter.com/DGHqeBYvlo
— Giselle (@itsgissel) March 17, 2021
Justin Long didn’t help prevent a US cyber-attack in Die Hard 4.0 to be called the “I’m a Mac” guy. https://t.co/sCDFBrVa5H
— Steve Wright
(@ste_wr) March 17, 2021
The biggest traitor in history is now Justin Long.
https://t.co/vx4pyfJhX3
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) March 17, 2021
Long’s presence in the new PC ads would also explain why John Hodgman, who played the “I’m a PC” guy in the Apple ads was left to fly solo back in November when the company attempted to recreate the duo’s old commercials. However, it doesn’t seem like Long is entirely committed to his new PC overlords. As one Twitter user pointed out, Long’s Twitter profile includes a picture of him holding an iPhone, and it’s still up as of this writing.
Justin Long in an ad saying PCs are better than Macs?
But here’s his Twitter banner: pic.twitter.com/gfturaKUf8
— Apple Parody (@AaplParody) March 17, 2021
Back in 2019, Long revealed that he filmed over 300 commercials for Apple, but he remembered the process running into a wall creatively thanks to the late Steve Jobs’ insistence that the ads not be too funny.
“One in particular, I remember, Zach Galifianakis played, like, a drunken Santa Claus,” Long told Entertainment Weekly. “And [Apple] said, basically, that Steve Jobs preferred when they weren’t super funny…. because he thought it would detract from the point of the commercial. He thought if people were too focused on the humor in it, they would lose sight of the product.”
(Via CNET)