M&Ms Characters Are Back From ‘Pause’ After Redesign Backlash

Ads for M&Ms candy have recently featured Maya Rudolph rather than their usual talking but still somewhat disturbingly edible “spokescandies,” but during Super Bowl LVII the familiar brightly colored characters were back, ending the short-lived marketing ploy that started with a tweet.

After some public semi-controversy over changes to the characters, M&Ms tweeted that they were going on an “indefinite pause” in a poking-fun message that obviously didn’t read too seriously.

But the whole affair actually started when Mars Wrigley announced the M&Ms anthropomorphized candy-covered chocolates were being redesigned to be more “current” and “representative” — a redesign summed up by many online as changing the line-up to be more “inclusive.”

After conservative Twitter users, bloggers, and some Fox News hosts expressed their varying degrees of amusement, bemused disdain, or even outrage, and liberal Twitter users, bloggers, and some MSM hosts their similar feelings about the feelings of the former, M&Ms made the announcement.

Since that tweet at the end of January the company’s ad campaign has featured comedian and actor Rudolph as the new candy spokesperson.

But the ad at the Super Bowl on Sunday night said the talking candies are back, a marketing conclusion reminiscent of the Coke, New Coke, Classic Coke model.

For most people, though, it’s likely the outcome of the talking piece of candy affirmation exercise probably won’t affect their decision on whether to eat M&Ms. When they show up in your stocking or your trick-or-treat bag, you’ll probably just let them melt in your mouth, not in your hand or your Nobel Peace Prize nominations or your boycott dome.

Watch the clip above, via Mars Wrigley, Fox, and the NFL’s Super Bowl LVII.