Mr. Potato Head Goes Gender Neutral, Drops 'Mister' From Title as Hasbro Rebrands Iconic Toy

Hasbro is making a big change to a legendary toy. The company is rebranding its iconic Mr. Potato [...]

Hasbro is making a big change to a legendary toy. The company is rebranding its iconic Mr. Potato Head to just "Potato Head," ensuring "all feel welcome" when playing with their beloved toy. The rebranding begins with the "Create Your Potato Head Family" pack, which hits stores in the fall. The set comes with two large potato bodies, one small potato body, and over 40 accessories to customize the toys. Hasbro later clarified that it would continue to sell individual Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head toys, just without the "Mr." and "Mrs." in the logo.

The family pack will allow children to create potato families that reflect their own. "Hasbro is making sure all feel welcome in the Potato Head world by officially dropping the Mr. from the Mr. Potato Head brand name and logo to promote gender equality and inclusion," Hasbro said in a statement on Thursday. "In the fall, the new Potato Family Pack 'Create Your Potato Head Family' will celebrate the many faces of families allowing kids to imagine and create their own Potato Head family."

In addition to the name change, the packaging is getting a complete overhaul for 2021 as well. The family set will be packaged in a box with a completely redesigned Potato Head logo and images of suggestions for potato babies and parents. "The possibilities to create your own families are endless with mixing and mashing all the parts and pieces," the company's statement said.

The announcement caused an instant stir on social media. This prompted Hasbro to clarify later exactly what Thursday's announcement was. They are only changing the Potato Head brand logo not to include "Mr." or "Mrs." The company still plans on selling individual plastic versions of the vegetable with male and female parts. These toys will even have "Mr. Potato Head" and "Mrs. Potato Head" printed on the box's front.

This is the latest effort from toy companies to create more toys for everyone. Over the past few years, Mattel has included more skin colors and body types for Barbie dolls. Thomas the Tank Engine added more female trains. In 2017, American Girl announced its first boy doll. In late December, American Girl introduced Kira Bailey. In the character's book, Kira Down Under, she meets her great-aunts, who are in a same-sex relationship.

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