Most successful people pay their dues by taking embarrassing and/or degrading jobs on their rise to the top (e.g., Brad Pitt dressed up as a chicken for El Pollo Loco restaurant), but most of the time, it isn’t caught on camera. Unfortunately for action star Vin Diesel, a video of one of his, shall we say, less illustrious gigs recently surfaced on YouTube, a video which the actor now probably wishes that he had the foresight to burn long ago.
In the video (embedded above), a muscled, leather-vest-clad Diesel enthusiastically pedals action figures from the ’90s so-bad-it’s-good animated TV series Street Sharks. The video was shot in 1994, long before franchise like The Fast and the Furious, The Chronicles of Riddick, and xXx made him a star. In fact, when this video was recorded, the actor had yet to land a single credited gig in Hollywood.
Jokes aside, though, we have to admit that Diesel is one heck of a salesman. Though his big break was years away at this point, his charisma and enthusiasm shines through and much of what made him one of Hollywood’s most bankable actors is on display in this video.
Here are a few of the highlights from this vintage gem:
0:08 — “Say hello to that round mound of pound, and his power-slam … very deadly.”
0:48 — “Boom: Death!”
0:54 — “I’ve got something here with such fin-tastic detail it’s gonna blow you away … HAND SHARK!”
Fin-tastic? Really??
Fortunately, modern-day Diesel is working on some more prestigious/lucrative projects. In the next couple of years, Fans of the actor will be able to catch him in Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (November 11, 2016), Fast 8 (April 14, 2017) and xXx: The Return of Xander Cage (2017).
Now please excuse us while we scour eBay for Street Sharks.
