• by Teresa Buyikian , October 13, 2023

There’s nothing scarier than the monster you can’t see -- especially if it’s chasing you. But when delicious-looking tacos randomly appear out of nowhere in a Free Tacos (Angry Monster)  truck in plain (red, glowing) sight, you go for it, right?

Those are just a few examples of the classic horror movie tropes featured in the latest effort from TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles for Jack in the Box’s Angry Monster Taco campaign, “Feeding Time,” an eight-minute YouTube video released Friday the 13th. You can view it here.

The short starts when three unruly teenagers start terrorizing a dimly lit suburban neighborhood on Halloween in full terrifying costume. They bully two younger kids out of their trick-or-treat candy, smashing jack o’ lanterns with a baseball bat along the way. What they don’t realize is that the Free Angry Monster Taco truck, playing the same warped nursery rhyme music as in  the teasers, has been watching. And (it?) isn’t happy. As any avid horror fan knows, bullies generally get what’s coming to them – and “Feeding Time,” does not disappoint.

The video was written by Hollywood horror writers Marcus Dunstan, Asha Michelle Wilson, Patrick Melton and Kara Lee Corthron, respectively known for their work on projects like “American Horror Story: 1984," "Servant" and the “Saw” film franchise. Marcus Dunstan directed.

“The name [Angry Monster Taco] was a gift,” said Jeff O’Keefe, creative director, TBWA\Chiat\Day in Los Angeles in a release. “It provided a natural jumping-off point to explore a monstrous presence in our advertising and to have some fun with the bulletproof, time-honored cachet of monsters in popular culture and entertainment.”

Marketing Daily spoke with David Weiner, writer and director of the ”In Search of Darkness” horror documentary trilogy, who said, “When it comes to clever advertising, I'm a sucker for a trope-filled tale featuring bullies who deserve a comeuppance. Everyone loves a good horror hook around Halloween, and this extended spot ticks all the right boxes to elicit both smiles and even a shudder or two from knowing genre fans."

The chain’s spokesman, Jack. makes a brief cameo, quickly escaping without a scratch. The teenagers? Not so lucky. And (of course) the younger kids prevail in the end.

The full campaign includes a :30 Monster Taco live action spot, two :15 Monster Taco spots and :15 and :06 spots for LTO items, and the eight-minute short. :30s will run on Hulu/Huluween and the :15s on linear/sports TV, premium streaming, and digital video such as Hulu, YouTube, Paramount and Twitch. The horror short will run on Jack in the Box’s YouTube channel and other social channels.

Additional campaign components include a hidden code in the short for viewers to input into the app for free tacos. And he actual Free (Angry Monster) Tacos truck will be tooling around the streets of Los Angeles on Oct. 21. Consumers in Los Angeles can also rent the terror truck itself for their Halloween parties on Resy.