Kenan Thompson Directs Colorful Costumed Characters for Candy Brand Mike and Ike

Do they dress like the chewy sweets? Yes, they do

SNL legend Kenan Thompson goes big—silly big!—in his commercial directing debut. The work, for Mike & Ike, developed with agency Curiosity, breaks today.

Actors don candy costumes for quick schtick just before they’re swallowed by snack-craving humans.

Thompson’s Artists for Artists studio produced the campaign, which introduces the tagline “We Got’chew.” AFA partner John Ryan Jr. served as executive producer.

“We wanted to give Mike and Ike a fresh connection to a new audience,” Curiosity partner and CCO Jeff Warman tells Muse. “Research shows that the physical act of chewing helps reduce stress. With this campaign, we want to position Mike and Ike as the candy that’ll get you through life’s little daily dramas. That was really the chewy backbone of the strategy that led to the brand platform.”

“This campaign is focused on the experiences of Gen Z and Millennial audiences,” Warman says. “We wanted to highlight some everyday stressors they could all relate to and show how Mike and Ike can help them vibe through those scenarios with humor. Whether it’s being ghosted, feeling overworked or the awkwardness of forgetting someone’s name, we got chew.” (Tagline drop! Well played.)

Mascots are hot, which helped inform the creative approach.

“Every generation has their beloved brand characters, especially in this category,” Warman says. “Boomers had the know-it-all Mr. Owl for Tootsie Pops. Gen X had the lovable M&M characters with their sitcom dynamics. Millennials had the antics of the Sour Patch Kids.”

“With Mike and Ike, we actually had characters built into the name of the product itself. This gave us the opportunity to speak to its audience through relatable situations in the authentic language they love-–one that celebrates lo-fi content through the absurd, meme-ified and awkward sense of humor that’s already in their feeds.”

“We worked closely with Kenan throughout the casting process,” Warman recalls. “He knows comedy. He knows improv. The focus was on finding actors that portrayed the best of both.”

The actors—Yoshi Barrigas as Mike and Abby Vatterott as Ike—wore pliable foam suits weighing “about 30 lbs. each, so definitely light enough for physical comedy shenanigans.”