---
title: "Hamburglar Gets Hyper-Real Reboot No One Asked For"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/0ac55a23-47ce-4751-9888-ee62b7eadc2d
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/hamburglar-gets-hyper-real-reboot-no-one-asked-for-1596
category: "Fast casual"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Fast casual"
published: 2015-05-07T16:11:00.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T04:14:11.704Z
image: https://1851franchise.com/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fnewimage.1851franchise.com%2Fauthor%2Ff6b69df61a7e0c25a97afce1df1b7ceb5133.jpg&w=3840&q=75
---

# Hamburglar Gets Hyper-Real Reboot No One Asked For

**TL;DR:** McDonald's has reintroduced the Hamburglar character in a new, hyper-real iteration, sparking mixed reactions from fans and critics. The new Hamburglar has a less cartoony look, with a fedora, black trench coat, and a Zoro mask.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2015-05-07. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/hamburglar-gets-hyper-real-reboot-no-one-asked-for-1596).*

## Story

The ragtag team of corporate-burger loving yokels didn’t exactly hold the same level of fascination as Barney for my peers and I, but we certainly enjoyed them as children.

Grimace, Officer Big Mac, The McNugget Buddies – there was something for everyone. I mean, even the politically minded among us had Mayor McCheese!

My absolute favorite was always Hamburglar, though. A cherub-cheeked ginger more than willing to rob his friends for their cheeseburgers? Now that’s a man after my own heart.

So it’s with great trepidation that I now revisit my precious childhood memories by weighing in on McDonald’s' decision to reintroduce Hamburglar for a new generation.

This new iteration of the character is decidedly less cartoony. In fact, he kind of just looks like a lacrosse player in his mid-30s who decided to throw on a fedora, a black trench coat and a Zoro mask he picked up at the Dollar Store. He looks like he smells of Axe deodorant.

Maybe it’s just my childhood nostalgia talking, but I’m certainly not the only one who felt underwhelmed. Chalk it up to McDonald’s’ winning streak of late, I guess (heavy, heavy sarcasm).

"We felt it was time to debut a new look for the Hamburglar after he’s been out of the public eye all these years," Joel Yashinsky, McDonald's' vice president of U.S. marketing, told Mashable. "He’s had some time to grow up a bit and has been busy raising a family in the suburbs and his look has evolved over time."

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- McDonald's (company)
- marketing strategy (topic)
- rebranding (topic)
- Joel Yashinsky (person)
- brand revamp (topic)
- brand character (topic)
- character redesign (topic)

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Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/hamburglar-gets-hyper-real-reboot-no-one-asked-for-1596). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/0ac55a23-47ce-4751-9888-ee62b7eadc2d).