The M&M’s spokescandies are “back for good” — and the publicity stunt has been admittedly entertaining.
After the company announced it would take an “indefinite pause” from using the iconic anthropomorphized candy characters, Mars Wrigley tapped comedian Maya Rudolph to take over as brand ambassador for an M&M’s Super Bowl ad.
During a commercial break for the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl game, Rudolph, 50, advertised the satirical “Ma&Ya’s Candy Coated Clam Bites.”
She appeared alongside other background actors dressed in the original spokescandies’ colours. The red M&M spokescandy was also featured in the ad and was seen holding a ‘HELP!’ sign.
Just in case anyone missed the joke on the faux clam bites, M&M’s aired another ad that saw the spokescandies in a “press conference.”
“I’m glad to be back because this is what I was made for,” said the purple M&M (who, for the record, is also named Purple). “I mean, as a walking, talking candy, my options are pretty limited.”
The M&M’s spokescandies became “polarizing” after a rebrand last year aimed to make the characters’ designs more inclusive. Most noticeably, the green M&M ditched her well-known go-go boots for sensible sneakers, and the brown M&M lowered the height of her former stilettos. The brand also introduced the purple M&M in honour of International Women’s Day.
In January, M&M’s made the surprise announcement it would halt the use of its candy characters after loud backlash from influential right-wing voices over the redesign.
Tucker Carlson of Fox News led the charge to demand, among other things, that the green M&M have her sexy boots back. He called the candies “woke M&M’s.”
“M&M’s will not be satisfied until every last cartoon character is deeply unappealing and totally androgynous,” Carlson said on his self-titled show. “Until the moment when you wouldn’t want to have a drink with any one of them. That’s the goal. When you’re totally turned off, we’ve achieved equity. They’ve won.”
There were mixed reactions to the M&M’s Super Bowl campaign. Some found the advertising stunt amusing and mentioned similarities to a 2020 Planters peanuts Super Bowl commercial that saw Mr. Peanut, the fancy monocle-wearing mascot, die and be reborn. Others felt the whole campaign was a flop.
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Regardless, the spokescandies and their un-sexy shoes are here to stay, it seems. In reply to one Twitter user who commented on “the fact that people actually thought they were getting rid of them,” the company cheekily responded with a simple, “How could we ever?”
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