Isaiah Mustafa, who made a splash in those “Look at your man, now back to me” Old Spice commercials signed a talent deal with NBC.
Variety reports:
Mustafa’s turn as “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” in a series of Old Spice commercials has garnered the struggling thesp a lot of attention this year, particularly after the spot aired during the Super Bowl.
Since then, Mustafa — whose previous credits were bit parts on series such as “NCIS,” “Ugly Betty” and “Castle” — has seen his stock rise dramatically.
“It even got him a spot on Oprah,” said NBC Universal casting exec VP Grace Wu. “He made such an impression in such a short spot.”
Wu said she began meeting with Mustafa soon after the commercial aired and attempted to find a spot for him on one of NBC’s pilots this spring. But nothing panned out.
Nonetheless, “we felt he was a piece of talent worth developing,” she said. “He’s an attractive guy who’s just as funny and charming.”
Wu said she plans to have Mustafa audition for spots on several of NBC’s current and new series, as well as keep him in play for futurepilots. The actor will first be geared toward sitcoms — given the comedy chops he exhibited in those Old Spice spots.
But the actor could also wind up on more light-hearted hours such as upcoming anthology series “Love Bites,” or quirky actioner “Chuck.”
The former NFL player, who is featured as a Hot single in the current Ebony, also has a role in Tyler Perry’s upcoming For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf.
