You know that feeling when you hear a voice in your head and you can’t quite shake it? It’s gravelly. It’s intense. It’s weirdly breathy.
"Do it. Do it."
If you grew up in the early 2000s, or if you’ve spent any amount of time in the deeper corners of YouTube and TikTok, you’ve heard Ben Stiller raspy-whispering those words. It’s one of those cultural artifacts that shouldn’t have survived the test of time, yet here we are. Decades later, Starsky and Hutch do it remains a shorthand for high-stakes absurdity.
But honestly, where did it come from? Why did a remake of a 1970s cop show give us a catchphrase that sounds like a dark internal monologue?
The Birth of the Whisper
The year was 2004. Todd Phillips—the guy who later gave us The Hangover and Joker—decided to take the gritty, leather-jacket-wearing duo of David Starsky and Ken "Hutch" Hutchinson and turn them into a "Frat Pack" comedy.
Ben Stiller played Starsky as a hyper-intense, by-the-book detective with a Perm from hell. Owen Wilson was Hutch, the laid-back, guitar-strumming foil. The movie is a love letter to the '70s, but it's the specific weirdness of Stiller’s performance that birthed the "do it" meme.
In the film, Starsky has this bizarre alter ego. He calls him Maury Finkle, the founder of Finkle Fixtures, the "biggest lighting fixture chain in the Southland." To get into character, Starsky adopts this unsettling, guttural voice.
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When they’re trying to get a witness to talk or a drink to be poured, he leans in. He gets way too close. And then he says it.
"Do it. Do it."
It’s not just the words. It’s the sheer desperation in Stiller's eyes. It feels like he’s trying to hypnotize the person through the screen. Or maybe he’s just really, really high on what he thought was artificial sweetener but was actually a massive amount of "untouchable" cocaine.
Why the Catchphrase Stuck
Most movie quotes die a slow death. Remember "I'm the king of the world"? People stopped saying that in earnest about fifteen minutes after Titanic left theaters.
But Starsky and Hutch do it is different because it’s a mood. It’s the ultimate "I’m peer-pressuring you but in a way that makes me look insane" line.
- It’s Versatile: You can use it when your friend is debating whether to take a shot of tequila.
- It’s Short: Two words. Anyone can remember it.
- The Tone: You have to do the voice. If you don't do the Maury Finkle rasp, you’re doing it wrong.
Basically, the scene works because Owen Wilson’s Hutch is there to remind us how weird it is. He literally tells Starsky, "Will you stop with that? That voice makes you sound crazy."
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That’s the secret sauce of the Stiller/Wilson dynamic. Stiller goes 110% into the madness, and Wilson just stands there looking slightly confused and very blonde.
The Maury Finkle Connection
The "Do It" line is actually tied to a deeper bit of improv. Stiller has always been a master of the "intense weirdo" archetype. Think about White Goodman in Dodgeball or Derek Zoolander.
When Starsky claims he sounds like Maury Finkle, he’s referencing a specific type of '70s salesman—the guys who bought local TV airtime and screamed about discounts until they were blue in the face. Except Starsky’s version is quiet. It’s a whisper-scream.
It’s interesting because, in the original 1970s TV series starring Paul Michael Glaser and David Soul, Starsky was the street-smart one. He wasn't a lighting fixture salesman with a nasal drip. The 2004 movie flipped the script. It made the characters parodies of themselves.
The "Do It" scene happens several times, but the most iconic version is when they're in the disco. Starsky, vibrating with accidental drug-fueled energy, is trying to command the world around him.
What People Get Wrong About the Meme
A lot of people think the quote is from Starsky & Hutch (the TV show). It isn't. If you go back and watch the original series, you’ll find a lot of great sweaters and some solid car chases in the Gran Torino, but you won't find the "Do It" whisper.
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Another misconception? That it was a scripted masterpiece. If you watch the bloopers (which are arguably better than the movie), you can see Owen Wilson breaking character constantly. Most of that sequence was Stiller just pushing the bit as far as he could until someone told him to stop.
Why We Still Care in 2026
We live in a world of "micro-memes." A soundbite on TikTok lasts for three days and then disappears. But the "Starsky and Hutch do it" energy has stayed relevant because it taps into a very human desire: the urge to be a little bit of a chaotic instigator.
It’s a way to acknowledge the absurdity of a situation.
If you’re standing at the edge of a diving board and your friend yells "Do it," it's boring. If they lean in and whisper it like they’re trying to sell you a 40-watt bulb in 1975 Bay City? Now you’ve got a moment.
How to Do the Voice (A Quick Guide)
If you’re going to use this in the wild, you have to commit. Don't be half-hearted about it.
- Lower the Register: You need to sound like you’ve been eating cigarettes for breakfast.
- Add Breath: It’s 80% air, 20% vocal cord.
- The Stare: You have to look slightly past the person, like you're seeing a vision of a brighter future filled with disco lights.
- Repeat: Once isn't enough. It’s a rhythmic "Do it... do it."
The movie might not be a "cinematic masterpiece" in the traditional sense, but its contribution to the lexicon of weird comedy is undeniable. It reminds us of a time when comedies weren't afraid to be just plain stupid.
Honestly, the next time you’re facing a tough decision, or you’re just trying to convince your coworkers to go to happy hour, give them the Maury Finkle.
Next Steps for You:
If you want to see the master at work, go back and watch the 2004 dance-off scene. Pay attention to the "artificial sweetener" subplot—it’s the engine that drives the whole "Do It" energy. Then, try the voice out in a low-stakes environment, like asking someone to pass the salt. It works every time.