The Grinch cracks a smile after eating Wonderful Pistachios in cross-promotional campaign
Not even the grumpiest creature can resist the taste of a pistachio, not even The Grinch. A campaign for Wonderful Pistachios, featuring the notoriously sour animated character finds The Grinch breaking into a grin after eating the treat.
The Grinch apparently likes Wonderful Pistachios
The campaign is a cross-promotional celebration of the licensing agreement between Wonderful Pistachios and the upcoming animated feature, Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch. It plays on the greenness of the character and the snack.
Throughout the integrated multimillion-dollar marketing campaign, the anti-holiday Grinch goes through an emotional roller coaster when he finds himself actually enjoying something during the holidays: Wonderful Pistachios.
The campaign includes two commercials created by the Wonderful Company’s in-house agency and animated by Illumination. In the first commercial, a frowning Grinch is caught off-guard by how much he enjoys the taste of Wonderful Pistachios. And though he physically forces his face back into a frown, there’s no hiding the power of Wonderful Pistachios to put a smile on even the Grinchiest of faces.
The second commercial, which starts airing on 26 November, features the Wonderful Pistachios No Shells brand for the first time on television. In this spot, the Grinch doesn’t steal Christmas as much as he swipes the best part of it: the No Shells pistachios stuffing the stocking of the Whos of Whoville.
To create the custom animation and all other campaign assets for The Grinch’s brand partnerships, Universal collaborated closely with Illumination Labs, Illumination’s internal creative division.
“This partnership was a no-brainer,” says Darren Moran, chief creative officer of the Wonderful Agency. “When you put two famously edgy (and green) iconic brands together, the result is going to be fun, attention-getting work that becomes an instant holiday classic.”
The campaign will be supported by an online digital campaign and in-store point- of-sale, including bins and standees. To amplify it on a global stage, China and France will be airing the campaign online. In-store POS will also be on display in both countries as well as in Canada and Mexico.
“Wonderful Pistachios is the green icon of healthy snacking, so partnering with The Grinch, the green icon of the holidays, is the perfect opportunity to spread green holiday cheer to moviegoers everywhere,” said Adam Cooper, vice president of marketing, the Wonderful Company.
