In case anyone’s choco-late to the party, the M&M brand has officially announced that they will be making some changes to the iconic characters surrounding their classic candy. That’s right, the vibrant colored pieces of sweetness constantly ready to deliver a punch of chocolate decadence are the latest topic of debate making their way through social media. The cause of this dispute spurs from one little question: Should the M&M company have changed their beloved characters, or should the characters have stayed the same? Unsurprisingly, this question has drummed up a lot of controversy on the internet. While some are rather bitter about the change, others view this switch as a sweet option that will help the business evolve to keep up with modern times.  

M&Ms were officially released for sale back in 1941, but the characters themselves weren’t created until 1954. The M&M characters originally only featured Yellow and Red who represented peanut and regular M&Ms respectively. New characters weren’t added into the group until the late 1990s, and the most recent addition to the crew—Brown— was thrown into the bunch in 2012. Now, the classic M&M characters we all know and love are officially getting a makeover in the company’s attempt to become more inclusive. These changes include both physical appearance and the personality traits of our candy comrades. 

The two females specifically will be the recipients of the most visibly noticeable changes. The heels the Brown M&M usually sports will now be replaced with a pair of “sensible pumps,” while the Green M&M will trade her infamous go-go boots for a new pair of sneakers to “reflect her effortless confidence,” claimed Mars Inc. The females will also wear less makeup and their current dramatic lashes will be removed as well. 

The other M&M characters will also get a shoe switch. The Red and Yellow M&Ms will not have laces on their shoes, and Orange’s shoes will no longer be untied. As for Blue M&M’s shoes, little will change, but they will now resemble “a bad version of Uggs” as stated by Anton Vincent, president of Mars Wrigley North America. The M&M characters’ arms and legs will also be changing from the tan color they currently have to a faded tint that matches the color of their candy shells.

Another problem the M&M company looked to rectify was the lack of female representation in their characters. As it currently stands, there are two female M&Ms along with four males. While adding more female characters is a possibility in the future, according to Anton Vincent, the company has held off on making that change due to the sentiment that it would add certain implications to the product itself. For example, the company would have to add more colors into its already vibrant mix. Instead, the business decided to give the Green and Brown M&Ms a more prominent place in M&M advertisements. The two female characters will also reportedly have a more friendly relationship where they are now together “throwing shine and not shade.” 

The orange M&M is set to show more of his anxiety and “embrace his true self, worries and all.” Jessica Adelman, Mars Wrigley North America’s head of corporate affairs, stated that she was particularly happy with the changes surrounding the Orange M&M, expressing that this character “helps us connect to the more substantive conversation going on today about people’s mental health and well-being.” From this point on, the red M&M is going to break out of his shell and be nicer to this group of chocolate companions. The names of the M&Ms will become less gender-specific with the removal of the prefixes of “Ms.” and “Mr.” in an attempt to hone in on the M&M’s personalities rather than highlighting their gender. 

People can also expect to see a slight logo adjustment for the M&M brand where it’s set up straight instead of resting on its side. The change to the M&M characters will be released online this week and will be eventually incorporated in the candies’ packaging and additional marketing materials later this year. 

The company has stated the new look for the M&Ms is part of their “global commitment to creating a world where everyone feels they belong and society is inclusive.” While some are on board with these new changes, others have made it abundantly clear they oppose the change. Fox News host Tucker Carlson is one person who openly announced his opposition to the switch when he went on air and mocked the rebranded M&M cartoon characters. He especially didn’t care for the changes in shoes on the female M&M characters. When speaking of the Orange M&M’s changes to embrace his anxiety, Carlson made this rather bold statement about the character: “If you look at him, the orange M&M does appear very anxious. Maybe he doesn’t like all the ugly new shoes he sees around him. Maybe he liked the boots.” Another person on Twitter shared a similar sentiment to Carlson, saying “I cannot be the only one that is bothered by the changes made to Red, Yellow, and Green. Yes, it’s just shoes but I don’t like it. Especially Green. Now Red and Yellow are like Orange. M&M’s USA, change it back. If it’s not broke don’t fix it.” 

Despite the complaints coming from some on social media, there has also been a large group of people voicing a positive opinion on the direction the company decided to head in. According to Jessica Adelman, the response to the character’s makeover has, for the most part, been positive. Adelman went on to say that people need to remember the M&M characters are multidimensional, stating that “We don’t have to pick an adjective to describe them or how they show up in the world. They have many different facets of their personalities and you’re going to keep seeing that evolution come to life through content and programs over the next year and beyond.”

The M&M brand is one of many that has made adjustments to its logos and mascots in recent years in an attempt to remain modernized. One of the most notable brands to revise their product was Aunt Jemima, who renamed their brand due to its racist origins. Other companies of note that made a brand name, logo, or mascot switch include Uncle Ben’s rice as well as the Quaker Oats Company. These brands are a few of the many added to the list of businesses that have made a switch, with many other companies to follow suit in the near future.