Wrangler teams up with ‘Rick and Morty’ for new clothing line

Wubba Lubba Dub Dub! Adult Swim’s zany animated sci-fi series “Rick and Morty,” now heading into its fifth season, has been a cult hit with streamers, bingers and brands. Last year, Pringles brought a “Rick and Morty”-themed spot in the Super Bowl and sold “Pickle Rick”-flavored Pringles. And, in May, Wendy’s created a custom ad with show characters—mad scientist and blue-haired Rick Sanchez and his grandson, Morty Smith. McDonald’s even revived its Szechuan sauce in 2018 because it was mentioned in an episode. Now, Wrangler is teaming up with the show for a line of “Rick and Morty” clothes. The Wrangler x “Rick and Morty” collab officially launches Nov. 10, ahead of the Adult Swim Festival on the weekend of Nov. 13-14. Images and details of the clothes will appear that day at Wrangler.com. Pricing is currently being finalized. Holly Wheeler, vice president of global brand marketing at Wrangler, says the idea actually came about because the brand was mentioned organically in the show’s fourth season finale, “Star Mort Rickturn of the Jerri,” a not-so-subtle nod to “Star Wars.” In the episode, Wrangler is shown as sponsoring the NX-5 Planet Remover, which can blow up planets, but cannot destroy Wrangler jeans. The mention spawned the idea for the entire clothing line, which Wrangler is calling the “most indestructible collaboration in the multiverse.” “This collaboration is the most recent example of Wrangler’s strategy to embrace new audiences in meaningful and often organic ways, following several successful activations over the past year across music, sports and fashion,” said Wheeler in a statement. “We chose to work with the Adult Swim team after Wrangler jeans proved to be indestructible in the recent ‘Rick and Morty’ season finale, so we could hop in on the joke while introducing our brand to the show’s global audience. We’re excited for fans to see the designs during the collection’s official launch.” In a tweet about the collaboration, Wrangler wrote: “Sorry about almost destroying the Earth with the NX-5—our marketing strategy is a lot less aggressive. Stay tuned for the Wrangler x @rickandmorty collection launch to suit up with indestructible styles.” The tweet also shares a waiting list on Wrangler’s webpage promoting the collaboration where fans can sign up to be alerted when the items are available. Sorry about almost destroying the Earth with the NX-5 - our new marketing strategy is a lot less aggressive. Stay tuned for the Wrangler x @rickandmorty collection launch to suit up with indestructible styles. Get on the list: https://t.co/3Sg06cS6iu pic.twitter.com/jtiDh1qaFv— Wrangler Jeans (@Wrangler) October 27, 2020 Wrangler’s webpage also gives a disclaimer that “Rick and Morty” fans are sure to appreciate: “Wrangler jeans are indestructible against the NX-5 Planet Remover but have not been tested against vats of acid, portal guns, cloning machines, or shrink rays.” Although Wrangler’s mention in the show occurred before the pandemic started, the fact that “Rick and Morty” is an animation means the brand can expect the upcoming season of the show to continue to air as usual, if not sooner than anticipated, and fans’ enthusiasm around the series won’t dissipate. While there’s no premiere date for the fifth season of “Rick and Morty” yet, creator Dan Harmon told viewers at the virtual PaleyFest New York 2020 conference this week that the pandemic has been beneficial in focusing in on the new season. “We’re more on schedule than we’ve ever been,” he said. “It kind of makes you have to focus on the whole process when you don't have this office environment anymore. Everyone has to run this bee colony remotely, so the honey just gets made more consistently. It's working for us.”

Wrangler teams up with ‘Rick and Morty’ for new clothing line

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