Smokey and the Bandit petroleum company Mobil 1 produced television commercials, featuring NASCAR star Tony Stewart, closely based on the film. Called "Smoke is the Bandit" playing on Stewart's nickname, the commercials featured him as the Bandit opposite Darrell Waltrip who played Snowman and Jeff Hammond as Buford T. Justice. The story replaced the Coors beer with Mobil 1 products. The adverts poked fun at the film and even featured a Pontiac Trans Am and a cover version of the song "East Bound and Down". The commercials were produced after Stewart mentioned that the movie was one of his favorites. When "Smokey and the
Hal Needham other innovative equipment to the industry. Needham at one time lived in Burt Reynolds' guesthouse for the better part of 12 years. In 1971, he and fellow stuntmen Glenn Wilder and Ronnie Rondell formed Stunts Unlimited. Needham had written a screenplay titled "Smokey and the Bandit" and his friend Reynolds offered him the chance to direct. The film was a huge hit, and the two followed it with "Hooper", "The Cannonball Run", and "Stroker Ace", and "Megaforce". Needham also directed the 1986 BMX film "Rad". In 1977, Gabriel Toys introduced the "Hal Needham Western Movie Stunt Set" complete with a