Jerry Seinfeld, Giant Bug?

It has been interesting to see what the former Seinfeld actors have done after the end of that show. For the most part, they haven't done much that's been successful. Jason Alexander--George--tried starring in a show called Bob Patterson, where he plays a motivational speaker. Michael Richards--Kramer--starred in The Michael Richards Show which only lasted one season, and then, when returning to stand-up comedy, received some pretty bad publicity about racist remarks he made. Julia Louis-Dreyfus--Elaine--has been more successful. Her first attempt post-Seinfeld, Watching Ellie, didn't do well, but her latest sitcom, The New Adventures of Old Christine, has been met with both critical success and good ratings.

Jerry has kept a slightly lower profile, as he hasn't starred in a television show since the end of Seinfeld. He has done a few commercials, a few guest appearances on talk shows, and mostly, returned to doing stand-up.

It appears that lower profile is about to change. Jerry has written and is voicing the main character in the animated Bee Movie, a story of a bee who finds out that humans have been stealing honey from bees and decides to take legal action. It's seems like a good enough idea, although slightly unoriginal at this point--A Bug's Life (which had Julia Louis-Dreyfuss doing one of the voices, incidentally), Antz, and The Ant Bully have all done the "animated bug movie" already, and for the most part, done a good job. It will be interesting to see whether Seinfeld's Bee Movie will bring anything innovative to the mix.

I do however, seriously question Jerry Seinfeld's choice of promotional strategy for the movie. At the Cannes Film Festival, Jerry descended from the top of a building to the street dressed in a giant bee costume. Look at the expression on his face. He's thinking, "Boy do I feel stupid." And the thing is, he's right. He looks like a giant balloon on Thanksgiving in the Macy's parade. When I see this picture, I don't want to go see his movie; I wonder who his publicist is and why he still has a job.

Some comedians might be able to pull something like this off--comedians who are more happy-go-lucky or more into physical comedy. Jim Carrey, for example, strikes me as someone that could get away with doing something like this without looking like an idiot.

The thing is, Seinfeld seems to know that he looked stupid. Before he jumped, he said, "You know, one thing I hate is any kind of movie promotion that smacks of desperation in any way." Obviously, he's aware that what he's doing looks dumb. The question then becomes, "Why did he still do it?"

At any rate, I think Jerry Seinfeld should work harder to live by this rule of thumb: If it's something George or Kramer would think is a good idea, don't do it.