When was the last time you saw a beloved breakfast brand mascot turn into a supervillain? This is exactly what happens in “Loki Charms” when Lucky the Leprechaun becomes Loki, Marvel’s God of Mischief — and the Lucky Charms universe is never the same.
“Loki Charms”
The latest Lucky Charms commercial starts off on its usual merry note. Lucky the Leprechaun is happily singing about his favorite cereal, loaded with hearts, stars, horseshoes, clovers, and blue moons. Don’t forget the unicorns, rainbows and tasty red balloons!
A portal opens and Lucky the Leprechaun dashes off inside. Presumably, this door is taking Lucky to another good dimension. Or is it?
As soon as the door closes, another Lucky shows up. This can’t be Lucky, right? He doesn’t dress like Lucky the Leprechaun. Whomever just showed up looks and acts too much like… Loki!
“They’re mischievously delicious,” Loki winks into the camera.
Hey, those are our magically delicious Lucky Charms he’s talking about! This is definitely Loki. He disappears in a puff of smoke and takes over the cereal box. These are no longer Lucky Charms. We’re in an alternate universe where you eat Loki Charms for breakfast.
Making Loki Charms
Loki Charms, of course, are only here for a limited time. The limited-edition Lucky Charms promotion ties in with the Disney+ series Loki. You can buy a Loki custom cereal box by visiting mischievouslydelicious.com — get it before it’s gone!
This unique cross-promotion event was animated by longtime Lucky Charms animation Studio, Calabash Animation. What’s it like to make Loki Charms, anyway? I spoke with Sean Henry, Calabash Executive Producer, about animating “Loki-Lucky” as he’s fondly referred to and the mischievous fun in having the animated character pronounce “mischievous.”
This is a Lucky Charms commercial unlike any other where Lucky becomes Loki! What was the team’s reaction like when they heard they’d be joining forces with Lucky Charms and Disney and Marvel for Loki Charms?
Oh man, we were totally thrilled! Someone here had come across a “Loki Charms” meme online that we thought was pretty funny, and then we got the call that the brand wanted to do it for real. The idea was just too perfect, and we knew this was gonna be really fun.
What was it like to animate Loki and take him from a real-life super villain to an animated character?
The idea was that Loki had broken into Lucky’s world and (being the God of Mischief) was about to wreak havoc disguised as Lucky, so we had to find a balance with the design of “Loki-Lucky” so that he was recognizable as both characters.
Animators often act things out to help figure out poses and timings, and we often reference live action footage. There’s one particular shot from the Loki trailer that we were referencing pretty heavily for Loki’s performance. I just love how our animators captured Tom Hiddleston’s “Loki” persona with that sly smirk.
Lucky has never been “mischievously delicious” in nature, so it’s exciting to see the brand mascot role play outside of his usual personality. Where did your team members have the most fun in working on this campaign?
Well, I suppose Lucky does have a good-natured, mischievous side that he uses to get away from the kids who are always chasing him, but it was definitely fun to try something a little darker.
We probably had the most laughs just trying to figure out how the word “mischievously” should be pronounced.
“Mis-chiv-ous-ly?”
“mis-chEE-VEE-ous-ly?”
Ah, whatever!
What happens to Lucky at the end of the spot? Is he still Lucky or is he now, for a limited time anyway, Loki?
I’m sure Thor and the Avengers will catch up with him sooner or later, so get ’em while you can!
