Pringles Builds a Love Story Out of Crisps in Continuation of 'Once You Pop'

Pringles is making a full-blown love story out of late-night cravings.

In its latest chapter of the long-running “Once You Pop, The Pop Don’t Stop” platform, the brand introduces "Pringlelina."

It's a crisp-built romantic lead designed to pull younger audiences deeper into its world.

Created by BBDO New York, the campaign goes all-in on an absurd idea to make something familiar feel new again.

The idea is simple but strange enough to stick.

A young man constructs his dream partner using stacked Pringles, transforming a snack into something closer to companionship.

The campaign builds on the brand’s earlier Big Game push, but this time goes for a more personal and weirdly relatable route.

“Everyone finds love a little differently. Some people swipe. Some people stack,” said Dan Kelly, ECD at BBDO New York.

“Building a salty soulmate out of crisps hit a chord with Pringles fans, and now the snacking love story continues.”

Instead of scrapping its initial messaging, Pringles is doubling down on a platform that still carries weight.

According to the brand, 69% of consumers remain familiar with the “Once You Pop” tagline, while 51% still associate it directly with Pringles.

That recall gives the campaign a strong base to experiment on. And experiment it did. 

A Love Story in 60 Seconds

The hero spot exaggerates romance tropes and shows the full arc of an unusual relationship.

What starts as casual snacking quickly escalates into something more emotional, as the protagonist carefully builds Pringlelina piece by piece.

It feels both ridiculous and oddly sincere as the man takes the chip-made humanoid figure for a bike ride at the park, to a dimly lit dinner, and a slow dance by the living room. 

The spot ends with the protagonist's roommate walking into their intimate moment, causing Pringelina to collapse. 

In the face of despair, the protagonist still takes a bite of the now-scattered Pringles on the floor. 

The campaign rolls out in multiple formats, including a 60-second hero film, 30-second online cuts, and 15-second TV spots airing nationwide.

Each version focuses on a different beat of the story, making it easy to adapt across channels without losing the core idea.

The campaign will also move into digital and social, where Pringles hints at more “surprises” tied to the character.

This keeps the story open-ended, giving the brand room to build on the idea through future brand activations and content drops.

Pringles’ Character-Driven Snack Story

For brands looking to stay relevant, Pringles is giving a masterclass on how to stretch a familiar platform without losing recognition:

• Long-running taglines can stay effective. Refreshed new characters, narratives, and formats will also more likely appeal to younger audiences.
• Humor-led storytellingworks best when it creates a repeatable idea that can be cascaded across multiple platforms.
• Building a campaign around a character gives brands more flexibility to evolve messaging without starting from scratch.

Kellanova, Pringles' parent company, maintained a strong market cap in 2025, exceeding $29 billion, up nearly 4% from the previous year. 

Our Take: Can a Snack Become a Love Interest?

There’s a more uncomfortable read here that we think is worth calling out.

This isn’t just a weird love story but a brand tapping into the idea of modern loneliness and turning it into something weirdly funny.

A guy building a partner out of chips is absurd, but it also mirrors how people are increasingly used to constructing connections on their own terms, whether that’s through apps, content, or... Pringle chips.

The brand sneaks into that space and says, "Fine, we’ll be part of that world, too."

From a marketing perspective, it's risky, but Pringles is all about risks.

Just take a look at the previous iteration of "Once You Pop" with Sabrina Carpenter. Unexpected, but it somehow it works. 

If you can attach your product to an emotional state people don’t openly talk about, you create a different kind of stickiness. 

And when you keep things light enough like this does, it lands as entertainment with just enough truth underneath to linger.

In other news, KFC's new campaign leaned into absurdity by making its crunchy coating a fashion statement for Brazil Fashion Week. 

Find the teams driving growth and engagement across every platform. Check out these top digital marketing agencies in our directory.