McDonald's UK offered spooky face painting in its restaurants for years.
Now, Leo UK is giving fans a new way to create McDonald's-inspired Halloween looks at home.
The "Spooky Sauces" campaign reimagines six familiar dips as face paint palettes.
"We all know and love our dips, but we've never seen them quite like this," Ana Saffer, marketing manager for digital communications at McDonald's UK and Ireland, said in a press release.
"We're looking forward to seeing our fans serve some iconic Maccies looks."
A social film and creator tutorials introduce the kits, while an Instagram giveaway hands out 100 of them to fans.
McDonald's UK has offered spooky face painting in its restaurants for years, including a 2023 half-term run for BBC Children in Need.
This year, "Spooky Sauces" takes the same idea online, where creators and fans can reinterpret the brand's menu, restaurants, and packaging.
The kits let McDonald's keep its Halloween tradition going at home, with fans doing the creating.
6 McDonald's Sauces Become Halloween Makeup
"Spooky Sauces" launched with a social film on TikTok and Instagram.
The cinematic spot reveals the makeup kit against a velvet backdrop, using spotlights, close-up shots, a gloved hand, and ASMR-style sound effects.
Six shades give McDonald's sauces Halloween-inspired names.
Sweet N' Spooky references sweet and sour, Tomb-Mato Ketchup nods to ketchup, and Curry Cauldron draws on curry sauce.
Boo-Boo-Q, Sweet Chills, and Garlic MayOoOo complete the collection.
Each kit includes a mirror, makeup brushes shaped like McDonald's fries, and a sponge inspired by a Chicken McNugget.
The accessories make the brand's food identity part of the creative concept.
Leo UK creative director Ben Hooper connected the idea to a familiar eating experience.
"Whether it's dipping fries or nuggs, we've all ended up with ketchup or sweet curry on our face," Hooper said.
"Usually by accident. So this Halloween, we're making a look of it."
On October 17, McDonald's launched an Instagram competition offering 100 free kits.
Fans can enter by tagging a friend and suggesting which McDonald's item the friend should transform into for Halloween.
UK creators will use the palettes to produce looks inspired by the menu, restaurants, and packaging through October 31.
McDonald's also plans to interact with and repost creations on its owned channels, giving fans a reason to share more user-generated content.
45% of Costume Wearers Look to Everyday Creators
Halloween makeup competes for attention in a season when consumers actively seek ideas for their looks.
The Halloween & Costume Association's 2026 survey found that 30% of U.S. adults who wear costumes look to Instagram, while 25% use TikTok.
On social media, 45% of U.S. costume wearers look to casual creators and everyday people for ideas, compared with 27% who look to influencers.
McDonald's can extend the reach of its social media marketing by making its sauce-inspired looks easy for fans to recreate, adapt, and share.
These findings point to three considerations for brands developing seasonal campaigns.
- Visual platforms help consumers find costume ideas. Brands should publish demo content on socials to reach people while they are looking for inspiration.
- Everyday creators can influence how people interpret a trend. Marketers should invite accessible, adaptable interpretations to encourage participation.
- Halloween inspiration comes from people audiences can relate to. Brands should make creative prompts easy to personalize to give consumers a practical starting point for their own posts.
McDonald's can extend the campaign's reach by making its sauce-inspired looks easy for fans to recreate, adapt, and share.
Our Take: Can a Giveaway Sustain Fan Participation?
"Spooky Sauces" plays on the sauce smudges fans get from dipping fries and nuggets, which makes the look easy to understand in a single scroll.
We expect the giveaway to spark the first wave of posts, with creator tutorials keeping participation going through October 31.
The main risk here is with access, since the giveaway covers only 100 kits and McDonald's UK hasn't announced a wider sale.
Tutorials that recreate each sauce look with ordinary face paint would open the campaign to anyone with a makeup bag.
McDonald's already invited fans to co-create around its sauces with "Here for the Sauce," its summer campaign with Leo UK.
"Spooky Sauces" gives this sauce fandom a second season, and fans' looks keep the dips in the conversation through Halloween.
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