Sam Neill, Bryan Brown star as birds in new Air New Zealand advertisement

Veteran actors Sam Neill and Bryan Brown have taken on the roles of birds in the latest Air New Zealand advertisement.

Neill, one of New Zealand's most famous actors, channels his inner kiwi and provides the voice for a CGI version of New Zealand's iconic bird, called Pete.

Brown, Neill's Australian equivalent, spreads his wings as a goose called Dave - a character he's played before.

Air New Zealand hopes its "Better Way to Fly campaign" will attract more Australians travelling across the Tasman and to North and South America.

Air New Zealand's videos have gained a reputation for their off-beat approach, which depart from typical in-flight safety videos or television advertisements.

Previous videos have featured Bear Grylls, Richard Simmons, Katie Holmes, Cuba Gooding Jr, Rhys Darby and Sir Peter Jackson.

Air New Zealand's global brands general manager of content marketing Jodi Williams said Australians had already grown to love Brown's performance as Dave the goose.

"When the long-standing friends got together again in the recording studio to debut Sam's version of Pete the Kiwi, their shared sense of humour produced some great comic moments," she said.

In a statement accompanying the latest video, Air New Zealand chief revenue officer Cam Wallace emphasised that the national carrier had more flights between Australia and New Zealand than any other airline.