• by Karl Greenberg , September 22, 2011

Jason Bateman has a new boss. And drinking 18-year-old scotch at 8 a.m. is definitely not going to be part of the initiation. The actor is the new voice of Honda advertising.

He appears in a new spot for Honda's Accord sedan that first aired Sept. 18 during the Patriots/Chargers game, according to the company.

The star of "Horrible Bosses" (in which Kevin Spacey forces Bateman to drink a full tumbler of the above-mentioned spirits) will also be in upcoming spots for the Accord and the redesigned 2012 Pilot.

The new spot shows successive images of Honda products through recent history, with Bateman doing a voiceover that says "What we created here...what we achieved here... what we learned here...and what we pioneered here...all goes here (shot of the new Accord.) Accord Tag: "The One."

Mike Accavitti, VP marketing at American Honda, said he's the right guy because he has a "down-to-earth, tell-it-like-it-is honesty that lines up perfectly with Honda's leadership as the smarter choice."

Automakers have, in recent years, been particularly fond of hiring A-listers to be their voices, leading to some interesting snaggles.

Hyundai, which has Jeff Bridges on contract, comes immediately to mind. The automaker, as part of its media strategy that focuses on buy slots on tentpole broadcast events, had a big media buy on the Oscars this year and last. The company could not use Bridges because he was up for an award both years. So Hyundai made its own media event out of it by bringing in actors/friends of Bridges to fill in for him.

Just to test my own memory, or maybe impress myself with how vapid I am, I have a list here of which actor has been the voice of which auto brand in recent years -- and, sorry, in no particular order, chronologically or in any other sense. I am excluding people who have actually physically appeared in ads. But you should tack this to your corkboard because you WILL be quizzed:

Honda: Richard Dreyfus; Kevin Spacey; Garrison Keillor (who spoke the tag, "Isn't it nice when things just work?" in that amazing Cog ad in the U.K., and was the voice in Hondamentalism ads); Rob Paulsen ("Mr. Opportunity." This is a stretch since nobody knows who this guy is.)

Acura: James Spader (drinks scotch, smokes cigars with William Shatner)

Mazda: Patrick Dempsey

Cadillac: Gary Sinise ("Break Through"); Laurence Fishburne ("Red Blooded Luxury")

Buick: Kevin Bacon (he was in last year's ad for the Regal)

Chevrolet: Tim Allen ("Chevy Runs Deep") (I'm not mentioning Howie Long because he appeared in Chevy ads, same with Mike Rowe at Ford for F-150)

Pontiac: Matt Dillon (Pontiac is gone, not forgotten; Matt Dillon is...does anyone know where Matt Dillon is?)

Chrysler: Adrien Brody ("Whatever Happened to Style" aired during the Golden Globes this year)

Dodge Ram: Sam Elliot

Dodge Durango: Michael C. Hall (he's the actor from "Dexter" and "Six Feet Under")

Jeep: Jim Parsons, (from "Big Bang Theory") Ok, he's not actually in Jeep commercials but he will be the voice of an anthropomorphic Jeep in a December episode of SyFy's "Eureka."

Lexus: James Remar (also from "Dexter" as well as "Sex and the City"

Hyundai: Jeff Bridges

Ford F-150: Denis Leary (former standup comic and star of "Rescue Me")

Mercedes-Benz: Richard Thomas ("goodnight, John Boy"); Jon Hamm (of "Mad Men")

Land Rover: Charles Shaughnessy (famous British actor who did soaps and other stuff)

Volkswagen: Ray Winstone (was in "Sexy Beast" and "The Departed")

Volvo: Donald Sutherland

Extra credit to those who can think of others! Mentioning the ghost of Harley Earl will lower your score by 10 points.