Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban won't remember every business deal he's made, every entrepreneur he's given advice to or every fan he given an autograph.
Heck, he probably won't remember every player who has played for the Mavericks.
But Cuban is certain one memory will accompany him for the rest of his life: The day he served as one of filmmaker Tony Scott's final subjects.
Cuban put his acting chops to the test playing himself in a Diet Mountain Dew commercial. In the advertisement, Cuban offers a Diet Mountain Dew drinker his riches for a bottle of the soda. Skeptical of the multi-billionaire's offer, the drinker declines Cuban's offer.
"I'm the luckiest guy in the world, so I like to just try different things and experience unique opportunities," says Cuban, who also portrayed himself on the final two seasons of Entourage. "Acting and doing the commercials and movies or whatever. The Mountain Dew commercial was just a unique opportunity, so I had to grab it."
It turned out to be the late Tony Scott's final commercial as a director. The brother of filmmaker Ridley Scott and director of Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop II, Enemy of the State, Man on Fire, Unstoppable and a plethora of other feature films, Scott passed away Sunday from a suicide.
For Cuban, who joined Tom Cruise, Eddie Murphy, Will Smith and Denzel Washington among those to have worked under Scott's direction, the commercial leaves a bittersweet taste. It was an honor for Cuban to work with Scott but hard to fathom the director's passing so shortly after the filming.
"He was amazing and it's just so heartbreaking to hear what happened," Cuban says. "He was a live wire. He was full of energy. We got to talk about what he thought about The Wild Bunch, a project he was looking at, bringing back Top Gun, doing that remake, and hearing stories. I mean he was just cracking everybody up on the set. He was just nonstop energy, so it's just really, really sad to hear of his passing."
A sequel to Top Gun and a remake of 1969 western The Wild Bunch were among Scott's planned films.
Cuban joins a long list of celebrities who have been featured in Scott commercials. This includes Anthony Hopkins, James Brown, Marilyn Manson and Clive Owen.
"It was fun to work with Tony Scott. You know, we're all saddened by the fact that he's passed away. It was an amazing director, an amazing cast and a unique experience," Cuban says.
A connection between an outspoken Pittsburgh-bred businessman and a British filmmaker does not exactly seem like a match made in heaven. But for one day, thanks to Diet Mountain Dew and a clever script, the two men were linked.
Mark Cuban will not soon forget that. He was one of Scott's final teammates.
