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Metal Gear's Original Snake Actor Reprises Role for New Ford Ad

This probably isn't how you expected Hayter to take the mantle back from Kiefer Sutherland.

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Metal Gear Solid V controversially replaced longtime Snake voice actor David Hayter with 24's Kiefer Sutherland, but Hayter is now back doing Snake again--in a new advertisement for Ford.

As shared by Hayter on Twitter today, Ford has released a pair of new Metal Gear-themed ads. One (above) features a codec call between Snake and Colonel Campbell about the Ford Focus SE. The other (below) sees Pyscho Mantis reading Snake's thoughts, who apparently can't get his mind off of the new Ford Fusion.

Hayter teased on Twitter in March that he would be returning to the role of Snake for something. It turns out the script he posted a small picture of was for the new codec video.

He also recently returned to the role in a more unofficial capacity, as he'll be involved with a fan-created, Metal Gear-themed virtual reality "experience" called The Fan Legacy: Metal Gear Solid.

Hayter was replaced as the voice of Snake for Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain, the latest entries in the series (and the final ones directed by series creator Hideo Kojima). Hayter recently said he has "no particular love for Kojima" and no interest in working with him again. He apparently isn't opposed to returning to the role of Snake, at least on a small scale, which shouldn't come as a surprise after he said, "If it were my choice, I would do this role forever," back in 2013.

It was revealed in a Game Informer interview last month that previous attempts were made to replace Hayter. We never got a satisfying answer from Kojima as to why the change was made for Metal Gear Solid V; in 2013 he said, "It's a new type of Metal Gear game and we wanted to have this reflected in the voice actor as well." Despite this, the Japanese voice actor was not changed for the game.

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5olid_5nake

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Edited By 5olid_5nake

That was dumb and I love it.

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ABIBASS

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niggez iz broke these days

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stannisrez

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The ad was a little off place but also a little silly.

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Kadin_Kai

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I wonder what Mr Kojima thinks about this? I guess Konami needs money.

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JonExotic

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Edited By JonExotic

Colonel has a bit of an awkward voice

"Comes with a standard rear view CAM-RA"

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Swaghard

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Is this Konami taking an indirect shot at Kojima by selling out his masterwork?

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viesmiester

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april 1 eneded 9 days ago!!!

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bfa1509

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Haha. As a metal gear fan this is funny as fk. Probably lost on most potential car customers though. Also it's good to hear David Hayter's voice as Snake again.

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hoscba

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That's awesome!

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Carl_JE_G

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Edited By Carl_JE_G

Haha! Great job! Very innoventive and creative! Great way to acknowledge the important role that video game has taken the past decades till now. Well done Ford! Not that I'd but the car but this commercial was heck of a lot more fun to watch than 99% of other car-commercials out there. Thumbs up!

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NTM23

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I don't know. I love this. I love MGS, and I think it was awesome that Ford did something like this. It's super random too.

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deactivated-60e702de2431b

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This is just sad

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hmoobpaladin

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Edited By hmoobpaladin

All this does is make me want to replay MGS, not buy the car.

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CieloPerso

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Edited By CieloPerso

That's very confusing ad.

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IvanKavinski

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I didn't think I would enjoy these, but they are strangely awesome. Great job!

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Redrivar

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MGS is now street meat for sale

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PS2fweak

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I'm a big fan of the series, but It's been awhile since I've played the older games. I almost forgot how animated Hayter's voice was. So when I read this: "We never got a satisfying answer from Kojima as to why the change was made for Metal Gear Solid V", I'm guessing it's because Kojima wanted something more grounded.

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kazeswen

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Edited By kazeswen

@PS2fweak: Hayter's joke delivery of Snake was what made Snake fun and interesting. Sutherland's dry and boring performance of Snake is what makes his Snake forgettable.

Snake is NOT a serious character, he's a rip off of a John Carpenter character who to begin with was never serious. What made Hayter's Snake great was his acknowledgement of how ridiculous MGS really was and his ability to make light of all the nonsense that was happening around him, like a old sniper with a bird on his shoulder, or a man who spits bees, or a US president who dresses like an octopus.

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Tangsta03

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@PS2fweak: Hayter himself knew Kojima wanted to replace him for more than a decade. He had that much time to prepare himself and he's still acting shocked an whiny.

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BrokutheMighty

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Edited By BrokutheMighty

@Tangsta03: The only reason he is shocked is because he didn't think Kojima was that much of a spoiled brat and couldn't stand someone else being more of the face of the MGS series than himself. The MGS series is arguably remembered more for Hayter's portrayal of Solid Snake and Big Boss than Kojima is for creating the entire game series. This fact upset Kojima and like a spoiled brat he attempted to replace Hayter multiple times but was only successful with the last game. Ironic that the last game is the only one without Kojima's name on the box so replacing Hayter didn't help Kojima get any more recognized for his efforts.

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Tangsta03

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Edited By Tangsta03

@BrokutheMighty: The only 'spoiled brat' here is the actor who was lucky enough to be given the role at all, who now thinks both the role and the franchise belongs to him because he has an idiotic fanbase at his beck and call.

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PS2fweak

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Edited By PS2fweak

@BrokutheMighty: Lol...you're just talking shit. Everybody knows MGSV is Kojima, so his name not appearing on the box just made people upset at Konami. You can go back and read those articles if you want. And yes, "arguably" the MGS series is remembered more for Hayter than Kojima, but F*CKS NO. We should talk about reality instead of new narratives based on hurt feelings. Hayter is beloved by MGS fans. Hideo Kojima is a cultural icon.

People will always understand the difference between an MGS series that never had Kojima versus an MGS series that never had Hayter. One would NEVER exist and the other would just have another actor, and some fans would probably be whining about him because he got replaced at some point. Hayter was always great, but the tone of V just wouldn't work as well with his voice. It's hard for some fans to accept that, but they would rather ruin something new just for the sake of nostalgia. I don't personally think Hayter would've ruined MGSV, but it doesn't matter. Kojima wanted to go in a different direction. I can accept that because I'm a fan of MGS, and that series is much bigger than Hayter. If I wasn't a fan of Kojima's direction, how could I be a fan of the series in the first place? How could I be a fan of David Hayter as Snake if wasn't for Kojima?

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Tangsta03

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@PS2fweak: A good analogy would be Ian Fleming vs Sean Connery for the Bond character. Connery maybe a favourite for the role, but Fleming created the character and there have been many actors since Connery who have done the role justice.

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HeavyGavel

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Edited By HeavyGavel

@Tangsta03: Not an accurate analogy as Fleming, who only wrote the novels, not even the screenplays, didn't have a say in determining who'd get to play Bond.

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PS2fweak

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Edited By PS2fweak

Gotta love the new Konami...

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lostn

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Well they couldn't exactly afford Keifer Sutherland for an ad could they?

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SnakeSoldier

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@lostn:
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Sam3231

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LMFAO

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i-rock-socks

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Lol awesome

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johnrare

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well just hope that konami dont sue ford for the ads that they took from mgs unless they made a contract with the company

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PS2fweak

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Edited By PS2fweak

@johnrare: Just based on what was used in that ad, there's no way Ford did that without involving Konami. Fans were upset about Kojima moving on from Hayter, and Ford cut him(Hayter) and Konami a check to capitalize.

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zzamaro

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@PS2fweak: My thoughts exactly. We would have heard of a lawsuit already...

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jyml8582

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@johnrare: Konami might sue not because they have deals with other company, but because they are Konami.

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DemonicChaosXX

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smh..Hayter is just a whiny little child...He's a has been now, just holding onto that one role that made him a star...how sad..

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deactivated-5da4c0387991d

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@DemonicChaosXX: Well, he has a net worth of $13 million, is a successful actor and screenwriter, and a husband and father. Yeah, let's all pity the poor bastard lol

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Tangsta03

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Edited By Tangsta03

@barbarossa213: He has all that yet he's still whiny and acting like he's some kind of victim of an evil overlord. If I was Hayter I would be grateful for what I have and have achieved, and not hang on to this pointless incident. Kojima is gone now, so Hayter can suck up to the Konami execs if he likes, but he gains no respect from the real fans of MGS.

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HeavyGavel

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@Tangsta03: Apparently conviction and dedication are the new deadly sins these days.

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Salt_AU

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@DemonicChaosXX: Couldn't agree more.

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Redsyrup

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Nice! Thanks Ford and Hayter. That was a blast! The original MGS was lightening in a bottle. Everyone knew it at the time except Kojima.

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Dark_sageX

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No thanks, I'm saving up for a Hyundai Veloster (possibly Turbo or R-Spec if I find a good price) so not interested, but you know what would be great? MGS4 and MGS HD Collection for PC!

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senorbusyman

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i miss that Codec sound. i need that as a text tone

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Bond_Villain

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Edited By Bond_Villain

Nice, but how does that sell cars other than to fans of MGS?

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kazeswen

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Edited By kazeswen

Yes. Excellent. Love Hayter. Snake was always a joke character and Hayter gets the joke. Brilliant.

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Sefrix

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LOL these are great :D The ending to both had me smile.

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XxAK47xX

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*Begins clapping

That was awesome!

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