McDonald’s released new Boo Buckets for Halloween yesterday, featuring Disney Villains. 2026 is the 40th anniversary of the popular Halloween tradition. McDonald’s seemingly chose money and IP over nostalgia.
McDonald’s is celebrating the 40th anniversary of Boo Buckets by making them about Disney. Frankly, this 80s kid is mad about it.
While I understand that McDonald’s had a few years of character tie-ins in the early 2010s, a big anniversary year might not be the best time to shove Disney villains onto the buckets.
Some will argue that technically last year was the 40th anniversary because they did roll out in select test markets in 1985, but the official launch was in 1986.
One thing McDonald’s could have done was to make mini versions of the most popular designs from the past 40 years and release those as Happy Meal toys. Or bring back the top six designs from the past four decades.
But no.
40-year history of the McDonald’s Boo Buckets
1985–86: The Halloween pails started as a test in 1985 and went nationwide in 1986 as Happy Meal containers.
Originally there were three faces: McPunk’n (orange pumpkin), McBoo (white ghost), and McGoblin (green).
1989–1993: The characters changed to a ghost, a witch, and a pumpkin. The ghost started glowing in the dark in 1990, which was a big deal at the time.
-1991, McDonald’s had a brain fart and replaced the Boo Buckets with vinyl “McBoo Bags”. That did not go over well.
-The buckets came back in 1992 with cookie-cutter lids.
-1993 was the last year for the ghost, witch, and pumpkin trio.
1999: McDonaldland characters took over. The buckets featured Grimace, Birdie, Ronald, and the Hamburglar, still with cookie-cutter lids.
2010s: the licensing era:
-Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head (2010)
-Plain orange and green buckets with stickers (2011)
-Scooby-Doo (2012)
-Monster High (2013)
-Peanuts for the 50th anniversary of It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (2016)
These did do well. Monster High was incredibly popular.
2017–2021: The dark times. No buckets for five years.
2022: The original McBoo, McPunk’n and McGoblin returned with cardboard lids and sticker sheets. The lids were questionable.
2023: A new purple Vampire bucket joined the original three.
2024: Four buckets with monster faces and M-shaped handles instead of lids.
2025: The ghost, pumpkin, and goblin came back, along with a new red zombie and a black cat, each with three expressions.
2026: The 40th anniversary. Disney Villains, with no lids.
I do realize a lot of people do like the Disney Villains. Any other year, I would have thought it was a fun choice too, but 2026 is not the year for it.
Yes, I know I’m probably overthinking it.
I hope everyone does enjoy their 2026 Boo Bucket. I will keep wistfully thinking of what could have been.
Article compiled with the help of the Pirates & Princesses newsroom.
Pirates and Princesses is your destination for Disney news, theme park updates, and the pop culture you love. From Disney cruises and travel tips to Disney fashion, food, collectibles, and movie news, PNP covers it all. Visit us at piratesandprincesses.net for daily coverage. Follow PNP on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to the Pirates & Princesses podcast on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
AI Disclosure: All articles are assigned, edited and reviewed by an experienced human editor before posting. Like most modern newsrooms, WebReef Media uses a variety of AI tools to help with accuracy and efficiency. Ways AI may be used in article creation include research, grammar, fact-checking and ideation, as well as occasional AI generated or enhanced thumbnails or graphics. No articles are generated or posted without human oversight or involvement.