Ted Lasso Star Accused Of Not Being Human

Ted Lasso star Brett Goldstein has taken to Instagram to prove he is a real person after a rumor said that he was just CGI-ed into the show

By Tyler Pisapia | Updated

Brett Goldstein, the breakout star of the hit, Emmy-nominated AppleTV+ series Ted Lasso wants to assure you that he is indeed a real-life, human male. 

The actor issued a cheeky and hilarious statement on Instagram assuring his followers that he is not a fake character or computer-generated image born solely for the purposes of co-starring in Ted Lasso. If you’re new to this story, you may have reasonable questions like “What the heck?” or “Why is this happening?” The long and short of it is that Brett Goldstein’s fans on Reddit and other online forums began a jocular viral rumor that he is not a real person but merely a creation of the show. 

While it’s not uncommon for fans of a show as popular as Ted Lasso to take to the internet to have a laugh at something outrageous, the online speculation got so widespread that it somehow ended up in front of the gruff actor’s real-life face, prompting him to issue a response. 

In an Instagram video shared Thursday, Brett Goldstein addressed the situation in a less than convincing way. The entire video uses the Apple memoji feature that makes the Ted Lasso actor’s head look like an animated character’s. In the video, he scolds the online community for spreading rumors that he is not a “completely real, normal human man.”

Brett Goldstein goes a little further, joking in his usual no-nonsense tone that, although he’s real, he happens to live in an entirely VFX house. The Ted Lasso star concludes the video by noting that when he’s not playing Roy Kent on the show, he’s doing “normal human basic things” like rendering, buffering, and collecting data.

The response is a comedic goldmine from the actor who has found a way to make even the most monotone, short-tempered character be the most talked-about star of Ted Lasso. Some were quick to argue that the clever response was too clever, perhaps something drummed up by a robot designed to be a comedic genius? 

As Gizmodo notes, calling the Roy Kent character played by Brett Goldstein an entirely CGI work of fiction is a bit of a stretch. However, fans would be surprised how much VFX and computer-generated imaging go into the creation of Ted Lasso. Particularly for scenes in which the AFC Richmond team is playing in large, crowded stadiums. Eagle-eyed fans even thought they noticed the newest iPhone 13 placed in a shot in last week’s episode, which would make sense given the platform. 

Fortunately, Brett Goldstein will get his chance to prove that he’s a real-life person at the Emmys this year. He is personally nominated for best supporting actor in a comedy series for his role as Roy Kent in season 1 of Ted Lasso. Meanwhile, the show itself earned a massive 20 nominations including the highly coveted outstanding comedy series. 

So, if there are any Emmy voters wondering if Brett Goldstein is indeed a CGI character created as a big marketing ploy from Apple to make Ted Lasso a hit, they would do well to select him as the winner in his category so that he’s forced to either take the stage and accept the trophy or admit that he has no corporeal form.