Here's What the GEICO Gecko Looks Like in Real Life
The man behind the mascot is famous for an entirely different reason across the pond.
For over 20 years, TV viewers have been watching commercials starring the GEICO gecko, the insurance company's talkative mascot. While there have been a few different actors who have voiced the gecko over the years—the very first commercial featured Kelsey Grammer in the role—for many years, the character has been voiced by English actor Jake Wood. And though Wood might be known best for voicing the GEICO gecko in the U.S., he's popular for an entirely different reason in the U.K. Read on to learn more about Wood's career outside of the famous reptile.
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He starred on a long-running British series.
From 2006 to 2021, Wood played Max Branning on the British soap opera EastEnders, which has been on air since 1985. When he left the show last year, he wrote on Instagram, "Thanks for everything @bbceastenders What an incredible 15 years it's been. I'll miss the show a lot but I'm looking forward to new challenges and new adventures. Thank you to everyone for all your love and support."
In addition to EastEnders, Wood has appeared in many other British TV series, as well as played parts in the films The Illusionist and Vera Drake. He also recently starred in the play 2:22 A Ghost Story.
He competed in a reality TV show.
In 2014, Wood competed on the dance competition show Strictly Come Dancing (the predecessor to the American series Dancing with the Stars). He and his partner came in fifth place.
He hosts a boxing podcast.
In addition to his acting and voiceover work, Wood also co-hosts a podcast about boxing called Pound for Pound. The podcast began in 2018 and features interviews and commentary about the sport.
He's married and has two children.
Wood has been married to his wife Alison Wood since 2001, and they have two children.
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He almost stopped working with GEICO a few years ago.
There was a mild insurance company mascot scandal in 2015 when, as reported by Digital Spy, Wood tweeted that after 10 years he would no longer be the GEICO gecko because he claimed he "refused a huge pay cut." Not long after, he tweeted, "Hey Twitter, regarding a dispute I had with a lizard this week. I apologise. I was upset. Moving on, nothing more to see x."
Wood then retained his job with GEICO, and continues to be credited for their commercials online. He has also tweeted about his work with the company following the dispute. In 2017, he wrote that he had been "the voice for the Geico Gecko for the last 11 years." In 2020, he wrote in response to a tweet by actor Bryce Dallas Howard about her movie Jurassic World: Dominion, "Go Bryce. With love from the GEICO GECKO x (me, friend of your driver Richard!)."
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