Silent Bob Gets Real

Director Kevin Smith created memorable big-screen stoners. Now they’re a legitimate business.

- Jonathan Small

Life really does imitate art. In his 1994 indie film Clerks, writer- director Kevin Smith introduced the characters Jay and Silent Bob— two guys who spent all day peddling weed outside a New Jersey Quick Stop. Smith himself played Silent Bob; his childhood pal Jason Mewes played Jay. The characters would return in many of Smith’s movies…and now, 25 years and a different regulatory environment later, the duo are getting their own legal cannabis brand, Jay and Silent Bob’s Private Stash. Manufacturing-and-distribution company Chemesis International is to thank for it: The company initially approached Smith, who was more than enthusiastic to finally become a real-life ganjapreneur.

You’re a famous weed enthusiast. Why name the brand after your characters, instead of yourself?