The only thing more iconic than the late Burt Reynolds in the Smokey and the Bandit franchise was his Pontiac Trans Am.
The movie was huge, and it made both Reynolds and his 1977 Pontiac Trans Am incredibly famous.
The amazing success of the film series led to General Motors gifting the actor a brand-new Trans Am every year for the rest of his life.
But a strange phone call from the then-president of GM put an end to the deal, and Reynolds later opened up about what happened.
How Burt Reynolds and the Pontiac Trans Am became icons thanks to Smokey and the Bandit
Back in the 1970s, Reynolds starred as Bo ‘The Bandit’ Darville in the film series alongside the legendary Jerry Reed, Sally Field, and Jackie Gleason.
Crucially, his bootlegging character was driving a car that became a huge star: the Pontiac Trans Am.
Apparently, sales of the vehicle shot up precisely because of the movie’s success.
So GM did something that’s quite normal these days but must’ve felt a little unusual back then.
The then-president of GM picked up the phone, called Reynolds, and offered him some sort of endorsement deal.
But the deal was much better than expected: he told Reynolds he could have a new Trans Am every single year for the rest of his life.
Obviously, GM didn’t have to do it – but it was still nice that they did.
But shortly thereafter, the new head of GM had a change of heart.
Why the new GM president cut the deal short
For the next five years, Reynolds did indeed receive a new Pontiac Trans Am every year.
He gave most of those to his family members, but he did keep one for himself.
Then, in the sixth year, Reynolds didn’t receive a new Trans Am.
So he called GM to find out why, and what followed was a strange conversation.
Reynolds told Car and Driver: “Just to make sure there wasn’t some kind of an accident with shipping or something or maybe it got stolen, I made a call and it turned out Pontiac had a new president.”
Apparently, the GM boss told him his predecessor had loved Reynolds’ films, but he himself was not the biggest fan in the world.
The actor told the publication: “He got on the phone and told me: ‘That was the old president. He liked your movies. I’m the new one. I don’t like your movies’.”
This being over 40 years ago, the record is a bit hazy.
So we don’t know exactly what happened and how.
Still, receiving five free Pontiac Trans Am must’ve been a good deal.
