Kurt Russell and Lewis Pullman teamed up for the 2026 Michelob ULTRA Super Bowl commercial titled “The ULTRA Instructor,” thanks to the former’s family dog. Russell recently shared how his beloved pet pushed him to say yes to a Super Bowl commercial.
Kurt Russell talks about what inspired him to appear in new Super Bowl ad with Lewis Pullman
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Kurt Russell said his Labrador, Roy, inspired him to star in a Michelob ULTRA Super Bowl ad alongside Lewis Pullman. He joked he did it to catch up with Roy, who starred in a Budweiser Super Bowl ad in 2024.
“Roy, our Lab that I got gold for Goldie, he became the Budweiser dog. He went in on a cattle call, and they picked him — and I think there was a large audience for that! So I looked at this as an opportunity to maybe catch up with my dog. Who knows? Maybe this will be a really big audience.”
Russell said the whole family, including Kate Hudson and Wyatt Russell, watched proudly as Roy appeared on screen for the Budweiser ad. He said, “Kate did a little video last year of the commercial when it came on, and that went viral because Anheuser-Busch had no idea that [Roy] was a dog that was Goldie’s and mine.”
“They got more mileage outta that than they did the commercial, I was told by the Buschs.” As for whether Roy minds sharing the Super Bowl spotlight, Russell joked that the dog doesn’t seem worried at all. “So far so good, but I don’t think he’s too worried about much.”
Following his dog Roy’s time in the spotlight, Kurt Russell will take his own turn at the Super Bowl. He stars in Michelob ULTRA’s commercial titled The ULTRA Instructor. Directed by Joseph Kosinski, the ad features Russell as a mysterious snow guru training a rookie skier played by Lewis Pullman.
Originally reported by Ojas Kulkarni on ComingSoon.
