Do you remember the fun Gushers commercial from the 1990s, where all the kids’ heads turned into fruit? Well, what if most millennials’ first introduction to body horror became all too real? That is the subject of Mike Diva’s 9-minute horror short film, “FruitHead.”
Unlike most projects that undertake gritty reboots of nostalgic IPs, this one is being done with the company’s blessing. Gushers even posted the short onto its YouTube channel and is actively promoting the creepy bit of marketing.
The project came to be after decades of online chatter about the original Fruitheads advertisement giving people nightmares. The short imagines a world where that original ad couldn’t be made via artificial means. This leads to catastrophic consequences for one young boy who grows up to seek revenge.
“FruitHead” was done in partnership with Imagine Entertainment and stars award-winning actor Bradley Whitford and viral creator Chester Collins.
“The Fruitheads ad has lived rent-free in the heads of Gushers fans for nearly 30 years, and they still can’t stop talking about it on social media,” says Stephanie Lensing, Brand Experience Manager for Gushers at General Mills. “So, this Halloween, we’re finally giving them what they want with a reimagining of that ’90s ad with thrills and a bit of the humor our fans love from Gushers.”
“It was so much fun to play this character and reimagine the original FruitHead ads to give them this haunting backstory,” said Whitford.
You can watch the new unsettling short “FruitHead” below:
