KFC has tapped actor Jason Alexander as its latest colonel.
The Yum! Brands subsidiary is playing on Alexander’s experience as a sitcom star — he played George Costanza in the hit 1990s series “Seinfeld” — in commercials that started running on Monday promoting the fried chicken chain’s $20 Fill Ups, now available in four varieties: Boneless breast fillet, Original Recipe on-the-bone, Extra Crispy on-the-bone and Extra Crispy tenders.
In a 15-second spot, Alexander enters a family dining room accompanied by a sitcom-style applause and laugh track, using extra-long arms to carry a tray of all four chicken bucket varieties.
In a minute-long spot that is a satire of sitcom theme songs and opening sequences, Alexander plays the colonel providing chicken to a family of four participating in household activities.
In a press release announcing Alexander’s role, the actor, comedian and director said, “As the son of two working parents, there were plenty of dinnertimes when a bucket of chicken and all the fixins saved the day. It’s been fun to combine my personal love for KFC with my sitcom experience into a new take on the role of Colonel Sanders.”
Alexander is the latest in a stream of entertainers whom KFC has tapped to play Colonel Harland Sanders since 2015, when former Saturday Night Live performer Darrell Hammond took the role. Since then, the colonel has been played by performers including George Hamilton, Billy Zane, Rob Lowe, Ray Liotta and Reba McEntire.
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