Sometimes the best jokes are the ones that take a while to land. That’s why these two students pulled the best McDonald’s prank that went hidden for weeks. When they planned an elaborate joke on the biggest fast food chain in the world, they never expected things to end up like this…
Favorite Fast Food
The Pearland Texas McDonald’s was a favorite spot for two friends who loved getting fast food. For Christian and Jevh, Big Macs, fries, and sodas were the orders of choice, but the two never sat inside the store until one day…
An Ordinary Day
One sunny July 13th day, Jevh Maravilla and Christian Toledo decided to skip the long drive-thru line and just go right inside to order. Once inside, they noticed something surprising…
Too Good to Be True
On the wall in the back was a huge and empty space. It was a prime location for some cool advertising or interior design, but the wall was unused. A table sat right beside it, but that was all the space offered. At least for now…
An Idea Forms
It was almost too easy. There was something funny here, they were sure of it. But what would be the best prank for this wall? Well, first they looked around and saw something shocking…
Real Food
All the advertisements were preaching “real American food†but the two saw no people who looked like them. Maravilla and Toledo are both Asian and didn’t see any representation.
Real Representations
The two saw African American representation and a lot of white people in the advertisements and in-store posters, but no Asians. That gave them an idea…
Diversity Domination
With the release of more media and advertising featuring Asian-Americans, Maravilla and Toledo felt that McDonald’s was behind on the times. It was only right that they catch them up to speed…
It All Ads Up
Why not make themselves the Asian-American advertisements? The planning began quickly, and the two started crafting what would become the best McDonalds ad yet…
Picture Perfect
First, they needed to take the perfect ad picture. Since they both needed to be in the picture, they’d have to get creative with the angles of the photo. It had to look natural, but clear. But where would they start?
Friendly Neighbors
They picked a location. They decided that while they had a lot of good options, they wanted a green space to brighten up the picture. They set up outside the Neighborhood Events Center, and things were about to get a lot harder…
Campus Celebrities
The two set up a tripod to take a picture of them walking towards the camera. They wanted to look like two college students enjoying some McDonalds.
Fit for Feature
Across the Neighborhood Events Center, a Zumba class watched the team photograph themselves in the hallways. Next came the reverse heist…
Inside Job
After heavily editing the picture, the two had a pretty convincing fake ad. It even had the yellow dots around the product, as the other in-store ads did! But how could they get it inside?
It’s All About Timing
They had some time to figure it out. They ordered the photo to be blown up and on a sturdier backboard. It was expensive, but the prank would soon be all worth it…
Eyes on the Disguise
Once the final product arrived, they could start the next phase of the plan: getting it on the wall. First, they’d need a convincing disguise…
Goodwill Hunting
Toledo and Maravilla went to Goodwill. Surely they could make a makeshift uniform from something. What they found instead was unimaginable…
Meant to Be
There, in the racks of discount thrift clothing, were McDonald’s uniforms. It seemed almost too good to be true.
A Perfect Fit
Even better? The clothing was exactly their size. It was meant to be. They had the gear and the final product, now it was time to break in…
In Broad Daylight
The two decided that going in during a normal working day was their best bet. What’s sneakier than pulling a prank right in front of the employee’s eyes?
“Regional Interior Manager”
With their disguises on and the poster wrapped up, they trekked inside. Maravilla told them he was the Regional Interior Manager. A fake title, yes, but now the prank could begin…
Stick to the Plan
Using some nonstick adhesive tape, the two casually hang the poster on their chosen empty wall. It fit perfectly, and the staff didn’t say anything, at least not yet…
51 Days Free
After their success, the two were ecstatic. They left victorious. And their prank kept going for three months! For a total of 51 days, no one took the poster down. That is, until one day…
Viral Sensations
After months had passed, Maravilla tweeted about their hijinks. The tweet went viral, and caught the attention of one big celebrity who would change their lives forever…
Ellen Catches On
Ellen Degeneres is one of the world’s most famous talk show hosts. She’s known for featuring celebrities as well as viral sensations on her show. She had to have the two on the show. But would McDonald’s have the same reaction?
Ellen’s Honor
Toledo and Maravilla flew out to LA to star on the show. They were ecstatic to meet the famous host and tell her their story. Ellen was impressed and wanted to honor the two in some way…
The Face of McDonald’s
She gave Toledo and Maravilla a poster of her own face to hang in a McDonalds. She said she noticed not enough Ellen representation, and the pranksters laughed and agreed to the task. But there was more to come…
Diversity Campaign
McDonald’s heard about the joke. Though they worried about the corporate reaction, they proved to be good sports. They decided to keep the poster up and run it as a national marketing campaign promoting diversity. But what was the best part of this?
Banking On It
The two friends got paid $25,000 each for their participation. They applauded the creativity of the students and were honored to be pranked. The original poster didn’t stay up for long though…
Revelation Destruction
The original Texas poster was taken down shortly after the reveal, but not for long. The location was undergoing renovations and had to move the now iconic ad. So where did it go?
Pranked for A Cause
The final product was moved to the Ronald McDonald House to be sold during a fundraiser. Hopefully, the prank would be able to make a lot of money for the charity which helps families in a health crisis.