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One of the biggest legends in the wrestling world, "Macho Man" Randy Savage died at the age of 58 back in May 2011, but that isn't stopping one global company from using his likeness in a Super Bowl advertisement, and naturally fans of the WWE Hall of Famer have thoughts on the commercial, with many finding the depiction in poor taste. Bosch, a company that sells power tools and appliances, revealed it's first-ever ad for the big game, featuring actor Antonio Banderas and a "Macho Man" impersonator on Friday in an extended spot on YouTube.
In the ad, Banderas shows off his Bosch refrigerator, which he says makes him feel like Antonio "Bosh-deras," before the camera cuts to a man, who looks like an older Savage, out of his gimmick, using a drill to construct a bookshelf. He then turns into the "Macho Man," compete with ring gear and what looks like the WWF Intercontinental Championship around his waist, to further promote the tools alongside Banderas talking about the appliances. "Savage" then flexes and jumps through a kitchen table. In a shorter, 15 second spot, "Savage" can't get a pickle jar open and passes it off to Banderas, as both stand in front of a Bosch refrigerator.
"The more you Bosch, the more you feel like a Bosch," the longer ad concludes.
The president of the company's North American sector, Paul Thomas, said in an interview with Forbes that the advertisement includes both the tribute to Savage, as well as Banderas, because they are "physical manifestations of the confidence, strength and power felt when using Bosch appliances." Forbes also spoke to Banderas, but not the actor who portrayed Savage. While the commercial is light-hearted and humorous, with Forbes describing it as delivering a "feel good" message, wrestling fans don't exactly agree.

Fan Response Mixed



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The shorter commercial, which will likely air during the Super Bowl due to the notoriously expensive air time during the game (according to Forbes — Bosch spent around $8 million on the spot — has over 3 million views on YouTube, but only 121 likes as of this writing. While the comments are mostly positive, one fan noted that it felt like Bosch was "making fun of the 'Macho Man' more than anything." The comment questioned who thought it was a good idea, with other YouTube users responding to argue that the commercial was just funny. A post on a wrestling memes Facebook group also questioned who was in charge of marketing at Bosch.
Bosch posted the spot to its X (formerly Twitter) page back on January 27, where it only has around 1,440 views. One user replied that they wondered who got permission to use Savage's likeness, to which the company did not respondg. Another user responded to the post with a "HELL NO," and asked who thought it would be a good idea. User @bye_polarbear said it felt like the company was making fun of Savage.
Wrestling fans took to reddit to further express their distaste, one example being on the "CommercialsIHate" subreddit. User "MasterLezard" said they found it bad taste using the lookalike in the commercial.
"It's not funny or cute. It's disgusting and Bosch should be ashamed," the user wrote. "It grinds my gears when advertisers do this with beloved celebrities that have passed."
The real, late Savage was famously the face of Slim Jim, and his image remains in commercials for the meat stick alongside current WWE star LA Knight and Bianca Belair. His legacy in advertisements also lives on in the "Savage" Slim Jim size, where his image, complete with bandana and sunglasses, graces the product's packaging.

