How mainstream is Dave Portnoy nowadays? So mainstream that the Barstool Sports founder was parodied on Sunday’s episode of Family Guy. However, this portrayal was hardly flattering, particularly regarding the online sports brand’s fans. In the episode titled “Dog is My Co-Pilot,” Chris and Stewie open their own pizza shop, and “Mount Ve-Stewvius” stands to gain a significant business boost thanks to one of Portnoy’s famous pizza reviews.
“Wow, welcome Mr. Portnoy!” Chris tells the cartoon version of the Boston native.
“Ah, come on, please, call me Dave,” Portnoy replies. “Mr. Portnoy is how I’m referred to in court documents.” He goes on to review the Griffins’ pizza positively, predicting a surge in customer traffic.
“Once I post my review, you guys will have a line from here to Boston filled with nothing but UFC fans and insurrectionists,” Portnoy says. “Did you hear that Stewie? We’re gonna be rich!” Brian responds as the parody concludes.
Give Family Guy some credit: while the voice imitation of Portnoy was relatively underwhelming (let’s call it a 3.7), the writing of his pizza review was fairly solid (let’s say 6.6). The jabs at Portnoy and his fanbase were amusing, yet somewhat outdated, particularly the stereotype that Barstool Sports fans are all UFC-loving right-wing extremists. Surprisingly, Portnoy has not yet publicly addressed the parody—perhaps due to dissatisfaction with the portrayal or maybe he’s just saving his comments for his impending book deal.
