Burger wars escalate as Gold Star and Freddy’s bosses enter the fray
The internet’s unexpected fast food spectacle known as the ‘burger wars’ has entered yet another chapter after leaders from additional restaurant chains joined the viral social media trend.
The saga began when McDonald’s chief executive Chris Kempczinski posted a promotional video introducing the company’s new Big Arch burger. In the clip, the executive takes a small bite while describing the item as a “product”, a moment that many viewers online quickly found awkward and unintentionally funny. The video spread rapidly across social platforms and sparked widespread memes and commentary.
Soon after, competing chains started responding in their own playful way. Burger King released a video featuring its president Tom Curtis confidently biting into a Whopper, widely interpreted as a tongue in cheek contrast to the McDonald’s clip. Wendy’s followed with its own video showing US president Pete Suerken enjoying a Baconator while emphasising the brand’s “fresh, never frozen” beef.
What initially looked like a single awkward promotional moment quickly evolved into a multi brand social media showdown. Each new post added fuel to the conversation as companies attempted to highlight their own burgers while subtly poking fun at competitors.
Now the trend has expanded even further. Executives connected to regional chains such as Gold Star and Freddy’s have also appeared in videos promoting their burgers, effectively extending what fans online have jokingly dubbed the next “arc” of the burger wars. Their appearances continue the same format that helped the trend take off: a simple clip of a company leader eating one of the brand’s burgers while delivering enthusiastic commentary.
As more companies participate, the clips have generated millions of views and sparked a constant stream of memes. Viewers have compared bite sizes, analysed the enthusiasm of each executive and even joked about which CEO seems most comfortable actually eating the food they promote.
Marketing experts say the phenomenon highlights how brands increasingly use humour and internet culture to capture attention. What began as a single promotional video has transformed into a cross brand viral moment that provides free publicity for multiple companies at once.
Online reactions remain a mixture of amusement and disbelief. Some users enjoy the lighthearted competition between companies, while others joke that the world’s most powerful fast food bosses have suddenly become unlikely internet entertainers.
Whether the trend continues or fades soon, the burger wars have already demonstrated how quickly a simple social media clip can turn into a full blown online event involving some of the biggest names in the fast food industry.