Killing off your mascot can be a gamble for a company, but in the case of Planters, killing off their Mr. Peanut character ahead of the Super Bowl is a gamble that has paid off, inspiring countless reactions across social media, which includes councilman of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Tony Brooks, where the mascot was born, who offered his input on the matter. Brooks’ sentiment is that it won’t be long before the character returns, as it’s clearly just a marketing campaign to drum up support for the character ahead of one of the biggest advertising events of the year, which now extends outside of one night and includes the weeks leading up to the NFL match.
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“Planters would be nuts to permanently kill off Mr. Peanut. His birthplace of Wilkes-Barre will certainly mourn,” Brooks shared with The Citizens’ Voice. “Seems like a marketing stunt for their Super Bowl commercial. I bet Mr. Peanut will be back in a jiff.”
The current Mr. Peanut campaign is reminiscent of IHOP’s unexpected marketing ploy in 2018 of taking to the internet to claim they were changing their name to the “International House of Burgers.” Some of the restaurants’ storefronts even briefly adopted the new name, in an attempt to expand the outlook of customers to include more than just breakfast food. IHOP went on to confirm that, of course, they weren’t really changing their name.
Planters revealed their campaign earlier this week on Twitter.
“It is with heavy hearts that we confirm that Mr. Peanut has died at 104,” their initial statement read. “In the ultimate selfless act, he sacrificed himself to save his friends when they needed him most. Please pay your respects with #RIPeanut.”
A follow-up tweet added, “We’re devastated to confirm that Mr. Peanut is gone. He died doing what he did best – having people’s backs when they needed him most.”
The announcement of this news was partnered with a commercial featuring Wesley Snipes in which we saw a road trip take a devastating turn.
“It’s with heavy hearts that we confirm Mr. Peanut has passed away at 104 years old,” Samantha Hess, Planters Brand Manager at Kraft Heinz shared in a statement. “He will be remembered as the legume who always brought people together for nutty adventures and a good time. We encourage fans to tune in to Mr. Peanut’s funeral during the third quarter of the Super Bowl to celebrate his life.”
Super Bowl LIV will be held on February 2nd.
