Daniel Day-Lewis may have played President Lincoln, but apparently he’s still unavailable to sell Lincoln vehicles. So they’ve gone with The Lincoln Lawyer instead.

Lincoln announced last week the Academy Award-winner for 2013’s Dallas Buyer’s Club and True Detective Season 1 star has signed a “multi-year” contract with the Ford luxury brand to help sell their new cars in a series of TV spots. The first will sell the 2015 MKC compact crossover later this year.

“Lincoln is an iconic, American brand and I like where they are heading with their transformation,” McConaughey said in the release. “I had the chance to drive the new MKC around Texas and I think they’re doing a good job.”

As far as celebrity endorsements go, this is a pretty big get for Lincoln, and one that could significantly raise its profile. The mere availability of the MKC has already boosted the brand’s sales usefully, but it still has a long way to go into reinventing itself into a formidable competitor against Lexus and even Cadillac. Let’s just hope it’s better than the time Lincoln tried to “Steer The Script” with Jimmy Fallon.

While the ads aren’t finished yet, Lincoln has given a little taste of what they and McConaughey have started. Will it work?

By Zac Estrada

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