WASHINGTON — Well that didn’t last long.
When the world got news a few weeks ago that the M&M’s spokescandies were being “retired” and replaced with Maya Rudolph, many were skeptical that the move was permanent.
After all, we saw what happened with Mr. Peanut’s untimely and short-lived death in a Super Bowl commercial a few years ago.
And as it turns out, the skeptics were right.
In the first M&Ms Super Bowl commercial, Rudolph introduced a new, clam-flavored variety that (hopefully) isn’t real. At the end of the bit, the red M&M spokescandy can be seen in the background with a sign reading “Help!”
Clearly the comedian had pushed aside the innocent mascots to enact her evil, mollusk-based candy agenda.
But the ruse was revealed right after the game, during a brief bumper ad that featured the spokescandies at a press conference announcing their return.
“I’m glad to be back because this is what I was made for,” the purple M&M quipped. “I mean, as a walking talking candy, my options are pretty limited.”
In the weeks leading up to the game, M&M’s maker Mars announced that they would return to the Super Bowl after taking a year off in 2022.
In the announcement, Mars said it was taking an “indefinite” pause on using the spokescandies, and replacing them with Rudolph.
The announcement came after some…odd controversies around the candy’s mascots. These included changes to the Green and Brown M&M’s shoes, changing them from boots to sneakers and from stilettos to smaller heels respectively.
“Now we get it — even a candy’s shoes can be polarizing,” the statement said. “Which was the last thing M&M’s wanted since we’re all about bringing people together.”
Because Mars didn’t release much information about their Super Bowl ad beforehand, it led to some speculation that recent backlash against the changes had actually pressured the company to retire their long-running mascots, even temporarily.