Christopher Lloyd And Tony Hawk Celebrate The Arrival Of The Hoverboard In Faux Advert
This article is more than 2 years old
UPDATED: Well, that didn’t take long. After a bunch of people kept insisting the hoverboard video was the real deal, Funny or Die has finally come forward to take credit for it. You can see Christopher Llyod’s “apology” below, followed by the original viral video. But hey, at least we’re getting power laces…
Every time you go to sleep, you wake up in the future (sort of), and people rose out of bed a couple of days ago to witness the promotional advertisements for the company HUVrTech, the creators of the world’s very first fully functional hoverboard. And I’m only estimating, but it seemed like half of the people who saw the celebrity-infused clips actually believed that they were real (news sites included) instead of saying to themselves, “Well, I probably would have heard about this scientific breakthrough from some peer-reviewed publication before seeing a company freely advertise it on the Internet.” I guess it needs to specifically say The Onion or Funny or Die for people to truly grasp the intention behind the pitch.
But it’s no fault of those more susceptible viewers, as the video above is quite a well-crafted clip. To usher in this new era of travel/recreation, HUVr Tech brought in actor Christopher Lloyd, whose work on the Back to the Future series makes him something of a hoverboard expert, right? And with such a relevant name introducing the product, the actual testing needs someone just as capable, so enter skateboarding icon Tony Hawk. (Admittedly, it would have been awesome to see either Lloyd or Michael J. Fox getting on the boards, but I guess that would have taken an even larger suspension of disbelief.)
The board Hawk takes out of the case looks pretty cool, but the pink, Trapper Keeper-looking board is absolutely hideous. That said, I’m extremely happy they got former NFL superstar and loudmouth Terrell Owens to use that one. Other celebs also show up to demonstrate the power of HUVr’s auto-stabilizing technology. Musicians Moby and Schoolboy Q test it out, as does actress Agnes Bruckner. And they all look like they’re having a great time, which is no surprise, since the HUVr board is designed to keep you safe. It’s right there in the designs!
And if none of those famous folks have convinced you yet, will Billy Zane’s positivity do the trick?
HUVr Tech also set up a somewhat simplistic website for their product, complete with a quote from investor Mark Cuban. (Note the header’s dates, similar to those seen in the Back to the Future DeLorean.) While all that’s on display is basically the team behind this product, these videos, and social media links, you should check out the Legal Terms. They aren’t outright amusing, but they’re worded well and make it clear enough that this product will never come out, and it doesn’t have to either. And now I’m thinking the “coming soon” app that tracks the board’s movements will end up crossing over into actual skateboards before too long. The future!
