NEWS: McDonald's Releases Anime-Inspired Menu and "WcDonald's" Shorts

BIG change is on the horizon for McDonald’s!

©McDonald’s WcDonald’s Logo

McDonald’s just made history with its first spin-off restaurant and menu that offered quite an array of weird menu items. We’ve also learned of new cartoon character-inspired Happy Meal toys that are coming soon for the popular fast-food restaurant. But, Disney doesn’t seem to be the only fandom that McDonald’s is interested in tapping into and now we’re getting our first peek at it brought to life!

McDonald’s is ready to embrace its (once) fan-fiction alter ego and make it a reality. Fans have long been making artistic renderings of what an Anime-stylized McDonald’s would look like, and it seems to have caught McDonald’s attention.

YUM

McDonald’s has set its sights on embracing the long-documented play on its brand, “WcDonald’s”, prominently featured in Japanese Anime and Manga movies, shows, and graphic novels. The now recognizable “WcDonald’s” was inspired by the popular fast food chain as a way to work it cleverly into their storylines.

©McDonald’s

Starting on February 26th, 2024, more than 30 markets around the world, will debut this new vision for the brand and unleash the WcDonald’s universe into the McDonald’s menu offerings featuring a new sauce, manga-inspired packaging, episodic shorts, and so much more. In a statement released by McDonald’s, the restaurant hopes the addition of the WcDonald’s universe would be “a reflection of what fans have created. It honors their vision and celebrates their creativity, while authentically bringing it to life in our restaurants for the first time ever.”

One of the most anticipated offerings to debut will be the Savory Chili WcDonald’s Sauce. This sauce will only be offered for a limited time and will combine ginger, garlic, and soy with a low heat from chili flakes (and based on that description alone we’re excited to try it!).

©McDonald’s

One of the biggest surprises to come out of this collaboration is that McDonald’s teamed up with well-known Japanese Manga Artist Acky Bright when designing the WcDonald’s packaging for the release. During the WcDonald’s limited-time run, customers will be served with manga-inspired packaging complete with WcDonald’s employees created from Acky’s own sketches.

©McDonald’s

But that’s not all! Anime fans will also be able to scan the code on the new packaging that will access weekly digital manga drops. These digital surprises will feature a full casting of WcDonald’s customers and employees like Hashirune, Mr. Bev, and WcDizer 3000.

©McDonald’s

When Bright was asked about the experience of creating this universe with McDonald’s it seemed he really enjoyed the creative process of working alongside the beloved brand. He said, “I loved being able to use my artwork to bring to life the dynamic, vibrant world of WcDonald’s for people around the world.”

Here are the details on the anime shorts that will be released:

The Race to WcDonald’s (drops Feb. 26): A rivalry strong enough to withstand the test of time as our two heroes embark on an epic race to WcDonald’s.
Love from Across the Booth (drops March 4): Our two protagonists discover the WcDonald’s Sauce and WcNuggets aren’t the only perfect pairing.
WcNuggets Space Frontier 3000 (drops March 11): A team of WcDonald’s pilots must protect the last WcNugget against an ominous force.
The Wisdom of the Sauce (drops March 18): Three women are transported to a distant land to unravel the mystery surrounding the elusive sauce before it’s gone forever.

We’ll be keeping a close eye on this release and how well this new sauce is received with the WcDonald’s limited-time run, so be sure to stay tuned with us for the latest updates!