McDonald’s Is Turning ‘WcDonald’s,’ Its Anime Counterpart, Into a Reality
The fictional version of the fast food chain has appeared in many films and series. The real-life version will be serving up "WcNuggets" and a limited-edition Savory Chili WcDonald’s Sauce.
Photo courtesy of McDonald's
There’s nothing wrong with immersing yourself in a good story to forget about the real world once in a while. But if your favorite escapist genre happens to be anime, one part of some fictional TV and movie worlds is about to cross over into this reality.
This month, McDonald’s is embracing what has become a common … homage, shall we say, to its golden arches in anime films and series: WcDonald’s.
Swapping in a “W” — or, rather, an upside-down “M” — has become a cheeky way for animators and illustrators to let their characters dine at or otherwise interact with what the audience can immediately identify as a McDonald’s without licensing the actual name of (or getting sued by) McDonald’s itself. Starting next week, however, McDonald’s is embracing its cartoon counterpart at its real-life restaurants in the U.S. and beyond.
So what can anime fans expect from this nod to knockoff Mickey D’s? Here’s a rundown of everything WcDonald’s being released by McDonald’s:
Photo courtesy of McDonald's
A New McNugget Sauce: To pair with “WcNuggets,” a new, limited-edition Savory Chili WcDonald’s Sauce is coming to the menu, described as a “unique combination of ginger, garlic and soy with a slight heat from chili flakes.”
Manga-Inspired Packaging: Japanese illustrator Acky Bright designed original artwork of WcDonald’s crew members for the McDonald’s/WcDonald’s items. Packaging will also feature a QR code with access to digital WcDonald’s manga content weekly featuring Bright’s cast of WcDonald’s characters (yes, one is a mecha).
Photo courtesy of McDonald's
A WcDonald’s Anime Series: The collection of four shorts is a collaboration with Studio Pierrot, the famed animation house behind titles like Naruto, Bleach and Tokyo Ghoul among many others. Episodes will “honor four of anime’s biggest subgenres — Action, Romance, Mecha and Fantasy,” and will drop weekly from February 26 through March 18 at WcDonalds.com.
A Real WcDonald’s Restaurant: On March 9 and 10, McDonald’s will open the pop-up WcDonald’s Immersive Dining Experience in Los Angeles, described as a “multi-sensory” restaurant that will offer “an exciting fusion of entertainment and food.”
An official announcement hints that diners “will be transported into the WcDonald’s universe through 360 projection mapping and immersive tabletop projections inspired by the four WcDonald’s anime episodic shorts — all while enjoying a set menu of WcDonald’s items.” Reservations for the L.A. WcDonald’s will be available via OpenTable beginning February 28.
Of course, despite its origins in Japan, anime has fans spanning the globe, so the WcDonald’s items will be hitting over 30 countries around the world for a limited time starting February 26.
Oddly enough, this isn’t the first time McDonald’s has flipped its logo in the United States: Back in 2018, one restaurant (along with McDonald’s digital channels) participated in a viral International Women’s Day stunt that saw the chain’s iconic “M” turned upside down.
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