Mikey still likes it.

PepsiCo is reprising the classic Life cereal ad “Mikey Likes It” to generate interest from parents—especially those juggling getting themselves and their kids ready in the morning, including giving them breakfast.

The musical spot, from PepsiCo’s internal agency D3, stars a new Mikey and introduces a new tagline, “I really love my life.” Mikey wakes up to a chaotic household—a sister jumping on his bed, a brother still in his underwear playing basketball in the hall, mom has toothpaste in her hair and dad really needs a cup of coffee. In a moment of calm when the family sits down to breakfast, he digs into a bowl of Life, and we hear the classic, “He likes it! Hey Mikey!”

“In consumer focus groups, Life did not come top of mind,” said Katie Scupham, VP of meal occasions at PepsiCo. “But when we mentioned it, they knew it immediately, and we saw there was a lot of latent love and positive memories associated with the brand. So we wanted to bring Mikey back for a new generation of kids and parents.”

Life cereal’s new spot will air on Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, Canela, Amazon, YouTube, Walmart Connect, TikTok, Meta and SiriusXM. 

The original ad from DDB aired in 1972 and starred John Gilchrist and his two real-life brothers. The spot opens with two of the brothers debating who should try a new cereal their mom says is “good for you.” They pass it off to little Mikey, a picky eater. He surprises them by eating the bowl of cereal, sparking the line, “He likes it! Hey Mikey!”

Perhaps most striking about the new ad is that it’s sung by Mikey. In the original, there is no background music, and Mikey doesn't speak.

“We wanted to build upon the original and felt like the brand was deserving of the new music and tagline,” said Isaac Pagan-Muñoz, VP and executive creative director at D3. It’s also more high-energy than the original, which he said was informed by much of the team’s own experiences as parents.

“I think we all had this instinct that this was reflective of our audience and this consumption occasion,” Pagan-Muñoz said. “Many of us are parents. I have a four-year-old, and even one kid can be beautifully chaotic.”

“We also wanted to show this time through Mikey’s eyes,” added Scupham. “Parents might find mornings chaotic, but to kids, it's just their morning, and there are moments of joy.”

The redux ad comes as consumer behaviors around breakfast have shifted since the pandemic. 

“During the pandemic, there was a return to the table,” said Scupham. “Now, with the return to offices and school, we are back to a renewed pressure to make mornings fast. Cereal is fast and still feels like you had a real meal, plus parents want to avoid morning breakfast battles.”  

This is not the first time Life has brought back the ad. In 1986, the original Mikey appeared in another commercial playing an uncle to two picky siblings. In the late 1998, there was a search for a new Mikey, which surfaced Marli Hughes. In 2000, another ad used the same shots and dialogue as the original, this time with an adult cast. And in 2019, another little girl played Mikey in a short spot.

Gilchrist is currently the director of media sales for Madison Square Garden.

Quaker Oats North America, which includes the Life brand, experienced an 18% drop in revenue and volume in the second quarter. The decline followed a product recall issued in December 2023 for potential salmonella contamination, which was expanded to include additional products in January. The recall affected granola bars and some cereals but did not include the Life brand.

Overall, PepsiCo’s net sales rose 0.8% to $22.5 billion for the quarter that ended June 15. By comparison, net sales for General Mills—the maker of Cheerios, Cocoa Puffs and Lucky Charms—fell 1% to $19.9 billion for the fourth fiscal quarter that ended May 26. Frosted Flakes’ and Special K’s parent company, WK Kellogg Co., reported a sales drop of nearly 4% to $672 million for the second quarter that ended June 29.