This Freaky Flying Chicken Turned Out to Be an Ad for Vegan Nuggets

Viral stunt had Canadians watching the skies

What has 10 MB of memory, 3.2-megapixel eyes, upper and lower "flappy things" on its face, and fully functioning wings?

Why, an advanced animatronic chicken drone, of course!

Rethink and SFX Studio launched the bogus bird to promote Simulate Nuggs, a line of vegan nuggets distributed by McCain Foods.

Soaring above Westminster Park in Vancouver, the fowl thing caused a viral sensation on this subreddit, generating copious news coverage and millions of views across social.

@serpentinefarms Flying Chicken in Vancouver #serpentinefarms #flyingchicken #chicken ♬ original sound - SerpentineFarms

"Making things that are just like chickens, but better, is just what we do," Nuggs explains in this project video:

NUGGS | We made chickens fly

Despite conspiracy theories, drone birds aren't really a thing. Also, chickens can fly. A little. Sometimes. Just barely above the ground. They prefer to work as photographers. But that's an entirely different campaign.

"It was so messed up yet perfectly on brief," says Rethink creative chief Aaron Starkman. "We just couldn't stop laughing at the premise to demonstrate the point that making amazing plant-based nuggets is a rare feat."

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