Chuck E. Cheese, the kids’ play place famous for its pizza, games, and animatronics, is running an event this week from October 9-13, called “Five Nights of Fun.” And if you think that name sounds familiar, you’re not the only one.
Many commenters online have noted that the event seems to be Chuck E. Cheese’s way of profiting from the attention surrounding the upcoming Five Nights at Freddy’s film … without actually partnering with Five Nights at Freddy’s (FNAF). The company also went so far as to make its flyer look like a movie poster, complete with a starring section listing all the characters and a ‘G for General Audiences’ rating.
Commenters also note that certain Chuck E. Cheese locations were hosting additional parties on October 27th, the release date of FNAF.
Basically, Charles Entertainment Cheese wants to have his cake and eat it too; the company wants to benefit from the free publicity provided by FNAF, without actually partnering with the brand. It’s easy to see why Chuck E. Cheese wouldn’t want to partner with FNAF, as they likely don’t want to associate their family-friendly brand with a horror franchise. Alternatively, maybe they just wanted the free advertising without having to pay to use the FNAF copyright.
Granted, these kinds of legal loopholes are very common in all kinds of entertainment. Some people argue that the Chuck E. Cheese mascot is meant to be a knock-off of Mickey Mouse, though ironically, Disney had their own Chuck E. Cheese ripoff in the late 1990s that ultimately failed to take off.
FNAF itself arguably owes its success partially to Chuck E. Cheese for being one of the most well-known themed kids’ party restaurants with animatronics. But none of that justifies Chuck E. Cheese’s response to commenters pointing out the similarities. The company’s social media accounts seem to be blocking social media accounts that make the connection between their event and Five Nights at Freddy’s. Which is arguably proving the point of those same commenters. They also appear to have sent out memos to their staff providing instruction on how to deflect guest conversations away from Five Nights at Freddy’s.
All of this is just turning away the audience that they wanted to court in the first place. If you want to benefit from the FNAF buzz, then partner with the game and lean into it. This lackluster attempt at riding the game/movie’s coattails just comes off as a bad parody.
(featured image: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
