Seemingly random actors in music videos

Cafe Society
#1

So I’m screwing around on YouTube, and I just rewatched the video for “Roses” by Outkast. There are a few actors/celebrities in it, including former Kid in the Hall Kevin McDonald and Katt Williams (side note: if irony after the fact exists, then it’s telling that Williams, in this video, plays a high-school student who asks “which one of you Speakerboxes hit me in the love below?” Especially after reading about his getting beat by a 17-year old after sucker-punching the kid). Paula Abdul also appears.

But what got me, from out of nowhere, is that Lukas Haas is one of Andre Benjamin’s dancers in the video. It boggles my mind as to how Haas ended up in an OutKast video, since I can’t think of what kind of mutual friend they would have.

And Haas is kinda horrible in it. His choreography’s off, his movements don’t look natural, and the one time something is said in unison, he’s late.

Part of me wonders if that was deliberate, in a whole “white people can’t dance” kinda statement. But more than anything, it just seems like such an odd pairing.

Any other examples you can think of?

#2

It wouldn’t be particularly odd to see Shaquille O’Neal in this Owl City video if there were a bunch of other celebrity cameos in it, but it’s odd that he simply appears, unremarkably, among a bunch of non-celebrity actors. Apparently the singer is a big Shaq fan and that’s all there is to that.

#3

Christopher Walken / Fatboy Slim:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ7z57qrZU8

#4

Annie Lennox - Walking on Broken Glass

If you haven’t seen it before, I don’t want to spoil who’s in it.

#5

Took me a few minutes to recognize Hugh Laurie

#6

Why does Kevin McDonald not strike you as odd also? What is his connection to Outkast? (Not pickin’ on ya - I am not aware of a connection and I think that is the more obvious weird guy! :slight_smile: )

#7

No, he jumped out at me, too. But I gave him a pass because he is just playing the same character that he was in KITH, and his appearances on “That 70’s Show.” He’s great at playing those wimpy, whiny characters that no one listens to.

#8

Did you also recognize John Malkovich?

#9

Yep. Much quicker than Laurie.

#10

That was pre-House, of course. He played a few variations of the British, upper-class twit. Easy to recognize him if you watched Blackadder the Third, but his transformation into Gregory House really was remarkable.

#11

More than just a cameo, Chevy Chase starred in the video for Paul Simon’s “You Can Call Me Al.”

#12

I’ll admit my first thought was that it was Christopher Guest.

#13

And Ray Parker’s “Ghostbusters”:
https://vimeo.com/103145947
Also it has John Candy, Danny DeVito, etc.

#14

Does it count if it’s from years (about a decade) before the actor got “known”? Because Josh Halloway of Lost fame was in this Aerosmith video

https://youtu.be/qfNmyxV2Ncw?t=3m22s
Of course you might also recognize the actress there, but I think anyone who knows Aerosmith videos of that era would expect her, so it wouldn’t be “seemingly random”.
There’s also Mark Metcalf, best known as Neidermeier from Animal House (also The Master on Buffy and The Maestro on Seinfeld) in two Twisted Sister videos

And Robin Williams in Don't Worry Be Happy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-diB65scQU

#15

Patrick Swayze in “Roseanna”

Norman Reedus in many videos. Saw him in Ugly Kid Joe’s “Cat’s in the Cradle” but didn’t know he was THE Norman Reedus cuz he just started his career.

#16

Lots of prefame people in videos. My favorite example is Matt Dillon as a cop in the Pogues’ Fairytale of New York (just a few seconds in).

Also a half-naked Jason Statham (several places).

#17

Hitchcock in “Misunderstanding” video by Genesis. (whoa Phil’s coif! YEAH!)

and I ain’t sayin where.

Terry-Thomas in the video for “I Am the Walrus”.

L Ron Hubbard in Europe’s “Final Countdown” video.

#18

For sheer WTFness, it’s hard to beat Milton Berle appearing in Ratt’s “Round and Round”.

Their manager was Uncle Miltie’s nephew (so for the nephew, he really WAS Uncle Miltie!)

#19

Yes. If you’d seen Blackadder you’d’ve recognised Hugh Laurie instantly.

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=hugh+laurie+blackadder&rlz=1C5CHFA_enAU503AU503&espv=2&biw=1314&bih=1244&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjLy6bco-XLAhVhvIMKHaHLBC4Q_AUIBigB

#20

He also was great as that type of character in the episode Bambi of the The Young Ones (along with Stephen Fry and Emma Thompson*!*) Probably one of the funniest scenes in the whole series…