Stalwart of the toy aisle, Toy Story star and cultural icon Potato Head has officially come out as gender-neutral.
Toy company Hasbro announced this week that it will integrate the popular toys Mr. Potato Head and Mrs. Potato Head into a new, gender-free version of the toy. The spud will come with both feminine and masculine accessories, allowing children the chance to explore different configurations of gender roles and styles through play. Fans of the traditional Mr. & Mrs. Potato head shouldn’t fret either; Hasbro says both original versions of the toy will remain on the market in some form as well.
Related: What Do You Mean Toy Story 3‘s Ken Acts Gay?
Non-profit queer rights organization GLAAD praised the announcement.
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“Hasbro’s decision to introduce Potato Head as a gender-neutral toy is the latest move in a larger movement towards greater diversity and inclusion in toys and media aimed at kids,” Rich Ferraro, GLAAD’s chief communications officer, said in a statement. “By offering a toy that exists outside of the binary of male and female, Hasbro is helping kids to simply see toys as toys, which encourages them to be their authentic selves outside of the pressures of traditional gender norms.”
Mr. Potato Head has occupied toy shelves since 1952; the original version of the toy came with only accessories meant to be used with a real potato. He also became the first toy ever advertised on TV, which helped make him one of the most popular toys ever. Mrs. Potato Head landed on the market in 1953, and the happy couple has enjoyed a long career together since. That includes alternate versions tailored for movie franchises such as Indiana Jones and Star Wars as well as starring roles in the Pixar/Disney Toy Story films.
radiooutmike
I grew in the hometown for Hasbro.
A great idea whose time has come!
Openminded
Sad to say, but I remember having an original Mr. Potato Head that required you to provide your own potato.
MANSUMM
Yeah, I remember the real potato also. Wasn’t there a Mrs Carrot also? And possibly a Pepper character?
Prax07
This is such a stupid and unnecessary change.
ShiningSex
THEY SHOULD JUST HAVE AN EXTRA OPTION FOR PEOPLE TO CHOSE. THAT’S ALL.
Cam
Why? SO now a kid can do whatever they want with the toy?
Terrycloth
Good grief. Gotta change everything now. ? This is ridiculously absurd where does it end…talk about going too far..please
ShiningSex
WE DO NEED CHANGE. HOWEVER, THEY SHOULD HAVE JUST INCLUDED A NEW OPTION FOR A GENDER NEUTRAL ONE. THAT’S ALL. NO NEED TO GET RID OF THE ORIGINAL WHICH BTW THEY REVERSED THEIR DECISION. WE NEED OPTIONS THAT’S ALL.
ShiningSex
THIS IS A MARKETING GIMMICK TO GET MR. POTATO BACK ON PEOPLE’S MIND AND HELP SALES. BTW, THEY REVERSED THEIR DECISION.
THEY SHOULD HAVE JUST CREATED AN EXTRA OPTION.
Cam
Remind me, how do you find the penis or vagina on a real potato? Oh right, there isn’t one, because they’re potatos.
GayEGO
How about an ALL gender Potato Head? :>)
Den
A lot of ridiculous and overwrought comments here from the usual suspects. If you just look at the three packages you see there is still one called “mr. potato head”, and one called “mrs. potato head”.
The new package has three potatoes, and says “create your own potato family.” And it has 45pieces in the box, rather than the 12 and 13 of the other two. Nothing here at all about challenging gender norms, though creative kids can very likely mix and match in novel ways. What this DOES do however, that is commended (and likely to drive “one million moms” crazy) is show on the box two same sex couples with the baby potato as well as one “traditional” couple with the baby potato.
When I was a kid we used real potatoes, which made the whole experience a whole lot more creative as we could put features wherever we wanted. Three eyed potato guy? no problem.
iminheatlikeacat
Seems an expensive and rather unnecessary change to redesign all the packaging and come up with new marketing media to strive for gender neutrality. I mean, at the end of the day, it’s a plastic potato with detachable parts. Take all the parts off and all you’re left with is a beige lump. I thought that was the point? Well.. as much of a point as Mr Potato Head has.
GreekKeys
Since there still is a Mr. Potato Head and a Mrs. Potato Head, how is this gender neutral? Or non-binary? Or is this just another woke lavendar fantasy groupthink we’re all supposed to pretend is real?