Those of us who grew up in the 90s are very familiar with the term “sellout,” which is essentially the negative connotation associated with the act of being “bought” through endorsements and other marketing tactics. Professional athletes, musicians… no one in the 90s was safe from being labeled a sellout after signing the dotted line for a lucrative endorsement.
That included professional skateboarding legend, Tony Hawk, who revealed on episode #1477 of the Joe Rogan Experience that he was labeled a sellout when he partnered with Activision to bring about the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series.
More specifically, it was his deals with major brands such as McDonald’s and Jeep - which came as a result of his athletic and gaming successes - that irked his haters.
"In those days, skating was very much a novelty. In the 90s, X-Games came into play, and then all of a sudden my name was well-known, not mainstream, but getting there. Then our video game came out, and it was just like, 'Oh, you're just a sellout,'" Hawk recounted. "Because of the video game and the endorsements that followed from that. I was doing stuff for Jeep, for McDonald's, for Doritos, and they were like, 'Oh, you're just a sellout.'"
Hawk brushed off the criticism, though, stating that he was already into things like eating at McDonald’s prior to the endorsement, so it’s not like he had made some kind of fundamental life change thanks to the almighty dollar sign. It was merely a matter of his hard work on vert paying off. Handsomely.
In fact, Hawk’s business acumen was on full-display as early as the first game in the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater franchise. Hawk reportedly declined Activision’s offer of a flat $500,000 for the first game, opting instead for a royalty percentage from the sales. This decision paid off - literally - considering the franchise went on to generate more than $1 billion in sales.
The world is a far different place than it was in the 90s. Instead of being a “soul skater” or musician who’s only in it for the music, nowadays, most people want that golden ticket endorsement or sponsorship. Tony Hawk’s talents and hard work led him to his success in the 90s, which continues today with the remastered Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 & 2 set to release this September.