The Minecraft Movie promotion has apparently been good for McDonald’s
McDonald’s Minecraft Movie Meal apparently generated traffic this month. | Image courtesy of McDonald’s.
The Minecraft Movie isn’t just getting people into theaters. It’s getting customers to McDonald’s.
The fast-food giant’s traffic has taken off in April since the introduction of its two-pronged Minecraft Movie promotion, featuring a Happy Meal for kids and a meal focused more on adults, according to data from the foot traffic tracking firm Placer.ai.
Traffic at the chain’s restaurants declined 2.6% in the first quarter, the firm said, though it appeared to improve in March.
Yet it took off once the Minecraft Movie promotion came out on April 1. Traffic was up 12.2% that day, a Tuesday, compared with the year-to-date average visit count on Tuesdays so far this year. It has remained elevated in the Tuesdays since then, though the rate of growth slowed, to 9.5% on April 8 and 7.4% on April 15.
The data is the latest evidence to suggest that, despite a host of challenges, consumers will respond to an effective marketing campaign. McDonald’s traffic was up in October last year, thanks to a Chicken Big Mac, before an e. coli outbreak reversed that trend. Rival Wendy’s likewise thrived last October thanks to a tie-in with the Nickelodeon program Spongebob Squarepants.
It’s not just traditional fast-food chains. Chipotle Mexican Grill also saw a lift. Visits to the Mexican chain increased 4.5% in the first quarter, according to Placer.ai. But they jumped to 6.3% above the weekly visit average during the week of March 10, after the company introduced its Chipotle Honey Chicken.
Yet for McDonald’s, the lift comes after a difficult few months. The company was hit hard last year as consumers grew frustrated by rising menu prices. System sales at the chain grew just 0.6%, its worst since the pandemic and before that the worst in a decade. And then e. coli hit just as a key marketing promotion brought customers in the door.
Sales at the outset of 2025 were also affected by weather and a consumer that continued to be reluctant to dine out as often as they did. But the company pushed more value this year, with the broad-based McValue menu. And with better weather in March came better traffic.
The Minecraft Movie, a tie-in with the highly popular video game, came out this year and has grossed more than $700 million worldwide, making it the most popular movie of the year thus far.
McDonald’s tie-in is unique, because it features both a Happy Meal for kids and another meal for older fans of the game. The adult meal featured a choice of Big Mac or 10-piece Chicken McNuggets, Medium Fries and a drink along with one of six collectibles. The Happy Meal featured a selection of 12 toys or figurines.
The promotion also featured a “Nether Flame Sauce,” a limited-edition sauce named for a “hell-like” dimension in the Minecraft game.
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