If your initial reaction to seeing Robert De Niro in an advert for Warburtons bagels was a resounding “WTF”, then we’re pleased to say we finally have a few answers for you.
Earlier this year, De Niro – who is currently appearing in Joker, and will soon star in Martin Scorsese’s new Netflix film The Irishman – appeared in a new ad for the bread brand, which parodied the 1990 gangster film Goodfellas.
Explaining his decision to appear in the campaign, De Niro told GQ: “Look, they asked me to do it and I met the guy [Jonathan Warburton, who also appears in the ad], and I thought it was funny.”
He continued: “I saw [Sylvester] Stallone do it and I thought at least he has a sense of humour about it and about himself. And I thought I can look at it two ways.
“Should I think I should never have done that? I’m too good for that or something? And I said, fuck it, I’ll do it. Why not?”
“Don’t hold it against me,” he joked.
But the Oscar-winning actor is far from the only A-lister to have signed up to advertise a beloved British food brand.
In the lead-up to Christmas, it’s been revealed that the queen of all things festive Mariah Carey will appear in a new ad campaign for Walkers crisps, which will feature her iconic hit All I Want For Christmas Is You.
Read Robert De Niro’s full interview in the new issue of GQ, on newsstands from Friday 1 November. Watch his Warburtons ad in full below...