Burger King's x-ray ads showcase the real dangers of eating its food

Campaign in Brazil features actual burger-related injuries suffered by BK customers

Published On
Apr 29, 2019

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Burger King has made a habit of turning bad luck into ad gold. Stores that caught fire proved the burgers were flame-grilled back in 2017. A fireplace screen commemorated a 17th-century blaze in Sweden.

Now BK is turning to personal tragedy, highlighting real injuries received by customers who were just trying to eat a sandwich bigger than their jaws could handle. David São Paulo used three real tweets from burger lovers who ended up at the hospital with eating-related injuries.

“05:30 am dislocated my jaw eating a Stacker,” reads one, referring to a range of burgers that piles up to four patties on a single bun. An image of the tweet (with identifying information blurred out) accompanies an X-ray of a painful-looking dislocated jaw.

The team at David found the tweets on social media and then referenced X-rays of real injuries (not those of the actual customers) to drive the point home. Those images were then touched up in postproduction to be publication-ready, and the agency also consulted with a medical professional to get the details right. Print, out-of-home and digital placements are all running in Brazil.