News | Entertainment
12 Feb 2026 18:31
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Ben Stiller thinks Benson Boone could enjoy a successful acting career

    The Zoolander actor starred in a Super Bowl commercial with the Beautiful Things hitmaker for Instacart's Preference Picker feature and he was very impressed by the 23-year-old singer's acting and improvising talents, particularly because he didn't have much experience of either.


    He told Entertainment Tonight: "What I was most excited about is that this guy's really an actor, and it was cool to see that, oh, he could do this if he wanted to do it.

    "And he also seems like he discovered he was a singer when he was, I don't know, 18 or 19.

    "He didn't even start out singing when he was a kid. He was more of an athlete, then he discovered he could sing.

    "So I feel like on this spot, he discovered he can improvise and do comedy, too."

    Ben was in awe of Benson's "incredible" talent and open-minded attitude.

    He gushed: "That guy is incredible. I loved him. First of all, he's so talented. He's got such a great, open attitude towards trying something new. I don't think he's done a lot of acting, and he just jumped into the improv and he just has this incredible ability to put himself out there in his musical talent, his physical abilities, and his willingness to kind of go and have fun.

    "To me, it was just such a blast to work with him. And as I said, we started to improvise together and I'd never met him before, so it was really fun to see that he had that skill and was really into just kind of going for it."

    The advert, which was directed by Spike Jonze, was inspired by 80s variety shows and ends with Ben's character Gary failing spectacularly when he tries to upstage his brother John after his sibling pulls off the kind of back flip Benson's fans will be familiar with.

    And the 60-year-old actor admitted he couldn't "even understand" how the Sugar Sweet hitmaker is able to do such impressive acrobatics.

    He said: "He just does these insane flips. I don't even understand how he does it. We were shooting after lunch and he's about to do the flip.

    "I'm like, 'What did you have for lunch?'

    "He's like, 'I had a couple of cheeseburgers and a milkshake.' And then he goes and does these crazy flips. Yeah, I love him.

    "He probably did it... I'd say at least 20 times. And he told me he does 10 to 12 flips a show or something like that, and I was standing right next to him watching him do it, and I still don't understand how he does it. It's crazy. It's crazy."

    © 2026 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     12 Feb: Kelly Rowland's son felt "happy and proud" when he saw her perform for the first time
     12 Feb: Drake lost $1million on a Super Bowl bet
     12 Feb: Dax Shepard almost died as a teenager
     12 Feb: Kim Kardashian is "excited" to relaunch her beauty brand and can't wait to come out with a "signature fragrance"
     12 Feb: Coco Jones paid tribute to Whitney Houston with her Super Bowl outfit
     12 Feb: Cynthia Erivo isn't "chasing" EGOT status
     12 Feb: Doja Cat has urged fellow celebrities to "shut the f*** up"
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    Antonio Shalfoon's determined to take another step up as the Crusaders senior lock - ahead of tomorrow's Super Rugby season opener against the Highlanders in Dunedin More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    Signs the economy is gaining momentum after a tough stretch More...



     Today's News

    Entertainment:
    Kelly Rowland's son felt "happy and proud" when he saw her perform for the first time 18:21

    International:
    James Van Der Beek was synonymous with his character. How he embraced it with humour will be his legacy 18:17

    Rugby League:
    Broncos prop Payne Haas insists his relationship with coach Michael Maguire has nothing to do with his shock move to the Rabbitohs after the upcoming NRL season 18:07

    Rugby League:
    A blow for the Warriors - with veteran outside back Roger Tuivasa-Sheck ruled out of both of their NRL pre-season matches 18:07

    Entertainment:
    Drake lost $1million on a Super Bowl bet 17:51

    Law and Order:
    Lawyers for the mosque terrorist who murdered 51 worshippers in 2019, have wrapped his appeal case 17:27

    Entertainment:
    Dax Shepard almost died as a teenager 17:21

    Motoring:
    The 5pm and 7pm convoys through Waioweka Gorge have been cancelled this evening - on the East Coast - with a forecast of possible heavy rain 16:57

    Entertainment:
    Kim Kardashian is "excited" to relaunch her beauty brand and can't wait to come out with a "signature fragrance" 16:51

    Entertainment:
    Coco Jones paid tribute to Whitney Houston with her Super Bowl outfit 16:21


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2026 New Zealand City Ltd