J.K. Simmons Explains How His Most Secret Role Changed His Life

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As a long-time fan of J.K. Simmons, I find it fascinating to learn about his unexpected yet life-changing role as the voice of the iconic yellow M&M for over three decades. While many know him for his intense roles in Whiplash and Spider-Man, or even his witty banter as J. Jonah Jameson, I now have a newfound appreciation for the actor’s contribution to the candy world.

J.K. Simmons, who won an Oscar for his performance as the demanding music teacher Fletcher in Whiplash and the grumpy newspaper editor J. Jonah Jameson in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, has shared that one of his most impactful roles was not from a movie or TV show, but rather from a long-running series of commercials. This role remains unrecognized by many fans to this day.

Apart from being associated with Spider-Man and Jazz music (an unusual pair), J.K. Simmons has been the voice of the famous yellow M&M for the past three decades. In a recent interview with GQ, Simmons reminisced about voicing this beloved candy character and disclosed that it was the most significant and life-altering acting job he ever received. Although voicing the yellow M&M didn’t earn J.K. Simmons an Oscar, it provided him with the financial independence to choose his projects and spend more time with his family. He elaborated:

“Billy West has been the voice of the red M&M for quite some time now, around 30 years. As this campaign expanded and Billy and I became recognized as Red and Yellow, our salaries increased. This was when I realized that financially, I no longer had to accept every acting job that took me away from my family for weeks at a time. Now, I can choose what I want to do, strive for a balanced life between work and home, and maintain both.”

J.K. Simmons Originally Auditioned for the Red M&M

After listening to J.K. Simmons as the Yellow M&M, it becomes an unavoidable voice. Simmons adopts a slow, drawling speech pattern but the deep, resonant voice is distinctively his. Interestingly, the actor had originally planned to audition for the role of the Red M&M. He explained that, following a stint on a police procedural where his character spoke rapidly and smoothly, he believed this style would suit the Red M&M perfectly.

Simmons shared that after finishing “New York Undercover,” where he portrayed a quick-witted, morally gray uniform cop from New York, he walked into an audition with the character description as, “‘The Red M&M. He’s fast-talking, wise, and so on…’, whereas the Yellow M&M is slow, sweet, and somewhat dim. I was in Red M&M mode at that point.”

“[I] stepped inside. The brilliant casting director, Janet Eisenberg, said to me, ‘You’ll read for the yellow part…’ I responded, ‘Hold on, hold on, hold on.’ I then explained, ‘No, I’m not yellow. I’m red.’ We had a humorous exchange as she tried to persuade me to audition for the yellow M&M instead. Thank you, Janet.”

J.K. Simmons became part of the long-running M&M ad campaign in 1996, replacing John Goodman. Following this lucrative opportunity, Simmons gained the financial flexibility to take on roles that he would later be recognized for, such as J. Jonah Jameson and Fletcher. Over the years, Simmons has collaborated with esteemed directors and writers including the Coen Brothers, Aaron Sorkin, Damien Chazelle, Zack Snyder, Jason Reitman, and Andy Serkis.

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2024-08-17 15:32