Who Plays The Little Lad In That Weird Starburst 'Berries And Cream' Commercial?

For most people, the “Berries and Cream” commercial is probably where they know Jack Ferver from, unless they frequent offbeat theatre productions on the East Coast. However, the legacy of the Starburst ad has sustained itself for well over a decade at this point. Ferver themselves brought back the character for a YouTube channel called “The Real Little Lad” in 2021. The world welcomed the berries and cream enthusiast back with open arms, as the comments section for their first video, “hello you toob,” is filled with delighted responses from people glad to see the scoundrel back. 

Ferver also brought the character to TikTok, where the ad got a bit of a second life via people making their own videos of the little lad’s dance and song. It all stemmed from a short “Berries and Cream” dance tutorial uploaded to YouTube in 2007 to carry on the commercial’s popularity. Adweek talked with someone who worked on the Starburst campaign, Gerry Graf, about how the “Berries and Cream” ad blew up on TikTok years after it came about. Graf explained, “It’s the first TikTok dance — that we just happened to create for YouTube.”

Many commercials air for a few weeks and are then promptly forgotten. But the Starburst “Berries and Cream” commercial has transcended being a mere ad spot. It’s a cultural sensation, and we all have Jack Ferver’s extreme, exorcism-esque performance to thank for it.

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