14 Candy Commercials That Were Oddly Intense
These candy commercials were meant to make you crave sugar, but they left you feeling like you just watched a thriller instead.
- Daisy Montero
- 4 min read
Some candy ads just showed a kid enjoying a treat, and others? They acted like eating a piece of gum was a matter of life and death. They were memorable for all the wrong reasons and often left more questions than answers. Here are 14 candy commercials that took things way too far, and still live rent-free in our heads.
1. Skittles’ “Touch” Commercial Gave You the Creeps
Postmaster12 on Wikimedia Commons
A man turns everything he touches into Skittles, including a phone and a coworker’s hand. It was meant to be funny, but the guy looked downright cursed. This one leaned more toward horror than humor.
2. Hershey’s “That’s a Lot of Chocolate” Meltdown
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A kid yells that someone’s getting too much chocolate, and his reaction is way too intense for what’s basically a sharing moment. His voice cracked, his eyes went wild, and viewers felt the secondhand embarrassment. All for a single bar of chocolate.
3. Mentos Drama That Belonged in a Soap Opera
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A woman breaks up with her boyfriend, pops a Mentos, and walks off like she just won a courtroom battle. It felt like a full-blown movie trailer in 30 seconds. You were supposed to feel refreshed, but mostly just confused.
4. Airheads Kids Got Way Too Hyped
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These kids didn’t just eat Airheads — they transformed into hyperactive cartoons with exploding heads. Their reactions looked like sugar-induced possession. It felt less like candy and more like chaos.
5. Sour Patch Kids Played Dirty
Industrial Arthropod on Wikimedia Commons
First they’re sour, then they’re sweet — but in the commercials, they started with destruction. One pushes a lamp off a table, and another shaves someone’s eyebrow. It was emotional whiplash in a gummy form.
6. 3 Musketeers Turned into a Cloud Dream Sequence
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A girl floats in the sky after eating one, and there’s soft music and white mist everywhere. It was oddly romantic and kind of dramatic for a nougat bar. You’d think she bit into a life-altering truth.
7. Reese’s “Not Sorry” Guy Was Way Too Intense
The Hershey Company on Wikimedia Commons
This guy stared dead into the camera and declared he was “not sorry” for loving peanut butter cups. The intensity in his eyes was something else. It felt more like a breakup threat than a candy pitch.
8. Butterfinger’s Simpsons Ad Got Weird Fast
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Bart’s catchphrase “Nobody better lay a finger” turned violent quick in some versions. Characters tackled each other or went full ninja mode. It was cartoon candy with a surprisingly aggressive tone.
9. Ring Pop Proposals That Took It Too Seriously
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Kids proposed with Ring Pops while dramatic music played in the background. Their faces were dead serious, like they were sealing a lifelong commitment. It was adorable and unsettling all at once.
10. Trolli’s Weird World Got a Bit Nightmarish
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These commercials were full of talking gummy worms, twisted faces, and acid colors. They leaned hard into “weird” and ended up somewhere between quirky and creepy. You never quite knew if it was still a candy ad.
11. Kit Kat’s Dramatic Break Room Saga
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A woman tries to take a break but keeps getting interrupted, until she bites into a Kit Kat and everyone freezes. The music swells like a thriller moment. All for a chocolate-covered wafer.
12. Push Pop Power Struggles
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These commercials often showed kids hoarding or guarding Push Pops like treasure. Fights broke out over who got the last one. It turned snack time into a full-on turf war.
13. Laffy Taffy’s Jokes Were Delivered Like Threats
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The commercials had mascots tell jokes with an intensity that felt misplaced. Their deadpan delivery made it seem like something bad would happen if you didn’t laugh. It left kids giggling nervously or just feeling weird.
14. Juicy Fruit Ads Felt Like They Had Stakes
Juicy Fruit on Wikimedia Commons
The commercials showed people doing wild stunts like surfing, skiing, or skydiving — all set to dramatic music just for a stick of gum. Everyone looked like they were in a life-or-death race powered by Juicy Fruit. It was gum, but it came off like an action movie trailer.