Is Doug Flutie In The Dr Pepper Fansville Transfer Portal Commercial?
To say that the Dr Pepper Fansville ad campaign has a devoted following would be an understatement. There are multiple subreddits that offer fan theories about the commercials, as well as a nearly two-hour-long video essay that explores the series' lore. It's a reaction that the higher-ups at Dr Pepper couldn't have anticipated when they launched Fansville in 2018.
As seen in the Fansville ads, the fictional town's citizens are obsessed with college football and struggle with miniature conflicts, such as a son who begins experimenting with soccer, star-crossed lovers who support rival teams, and a tailgating master who must cut his grilling season short due to injury. In the Fansville ad that debuted in late November 2023, a few residents stumble upon a sinister (and literal) transfer portal that starts sucking up players — a punny riff on the NCAA student-athlete database. Among the people who discover the portal is a man with eye black who sort-of resembles former NFL star and Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie.
It isn't unusual for former college football and NFL standouts to appear in the Fansville ads, which are now in their 6th season. For instance, Oklahoma Sooners legend and former Seattle Seahawks linebacker Brian Bosworth stars as the town's sheriff. But while Bosworth reprises his role in the transfer portal commercial, Flutie is not in the clip. The eye black-sporting man is actually played by Jason Wiles, who's appeared on several TV shows since the 1990s.
Flutie hasn't been to Fansville, but he does drink Dr Pepper
Jason Wiles got his start acting in the early '90s, and in 1995, he had a starring role in Noah Baumbach's "Kicking and Screaming." That same year, he had a recurring role on "Beverly Hills, 90210." Wiles is primarily known for playing Maurice Boscorelli, better known as Bosco, in the crime drama series "Third Watch" from 1999 to 2005. He later had roles in "Persons Unknown" and "Scream: The TV Series."
Despite Wiles' extensive experience in dramas and procedurals, he is well-suited to the silly universe of Fansville, in which he and his wife lament their son CJ's disinterest in college football. In one commercial, they chide him for coming home early on the night of their team's big win. Worse still, he doesn't even have the smell of Dr Pepper on his breath.
It wouldn't be a stretch for fans to mistake Wiles for former quarterback Doug Flutie, who won the Heisman Trophy in 1984 for Boston College and played in the NFL and CFL from 1986 to 2005. The pair share a striking resemblance, but more importantly, Flutie is himself a Dr Pepper commercial veteran. The former athlete appeared in a few ads when Larry Culpepper was still the face of the company's college football spots.
Moreover, it's easy to believe that Flutie would join the Fansville lineup of football personnel. In addition to Brian Bosworth, the ads have featured former NFL player Eddie George as Fansville's beer-helmet-wearing doctor, Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young, and erstwhile college football standouts DJ Uiagalelei and Caleb Williams.