M&Ms Dropping 'Spokescandies,' Going With Maya Rudolph

Hmmm, could this all be a Super Bowl ad-related stunt? We wonder...
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 24, 2023 12:21 AM CST
M&Ms: We're Replacing Controversial 'Spokescandies' With Maya Rudolph
Maya Rudolph arrives at the Los Angeles premiere of "Disenchanted," Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, at El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles.   (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

A year ago, M&Ms sparked a bit of a controversy when it gave its "spokescandies" a makeover that Tucker Carlson complained was too woke. Among other things, for example, the green M&M's iconic high-heeled go-go boots were replaced with sneakers, a change that prompted much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Now, the brand has an announcement: It is putting the spokescandies on an "indefinite pause," and replacing them with "a spokesperson America can agree on: Maya Rudolph." As USA Today points out, the spokescandies had just been featured in a Lunar New Year message the day before the announcement ... which, notably, comes as the Super Bowl, and its related headline-making ads, loom.

Some commenters on Twitter seemed to take the announcement pretty seriously, lambasting M&Ms for giving in to Carlson and his ilk, but, as the Washington Post points out, "it’s hard not to read a wink and a nod into just about everyone involved in the candy faux-troversy." Apparently tongue-in-cheek lines from the announcement (like, "We weren’t sure if anyone would notice [last year's makeover]. And we definitely didn’t think it would break the internet. But now we get it—even a candy's shoes can be polarizing") appear to suggest the whole thing could simply be a marketing stunt in advance of the brand's Super Bowl ad, which will feature Rudolph in her new role as "Chief of Fun," reports Today, which notes the ad is likely to be "one of the conversation-starting moments" of game day. (More M&Ms stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X