Mad humour has universal appeal, and it’s an especially strong Gen Z magnet. US creative agency, GSD&M, gave fast-food hamburger chain, White Castle, the power of absurd humour in January, with a campaign that personifies the White Castle superfan as a witty, tongue-in-cheek knight manifestation who appears whenever the craving hits, guiding people to the famous Sliders as the only true way to satisfy it.
The campaign, Crave Thy Castle, the first campaign for the brand from GSD&M after being awarded the business in July 2025, was funny when it had to explain the knight. Now it doesn’t. The new work is even funnier.
The new spots, two at 30-second plus 15-second cutdowns, target both White Castle loyalists and the ‘Crave Curious,’ a term coined to describe Gen Zers who are looking for bold bites, shareable moments, and brands that break the algorithm. They will run in the US across CTV, OLV, display, radio, and social platforms (Meta, TikTok, Snap), including influencer partnerships.
The commercials are supported by:
White Castle and GSD&M transformed influencers across TikTok and Instagram into Craving Catalysts, who turn everyday moments, from late-night bites, mid-day snack runs, and game day eats, into content that makes White Castle cravings impossible to ignore.
In an official partnership with DraftKings, White Castle stepped into one of the biggest moments of the year: Super Bowl LX. With US$5,000 in total cash prizes up for grabs, the White Castle Crave Thy Victory prediction contest reflected how the brand is showed up differently than ever before – not just for the game, but in the game.
White Castle also partnered with The Dan Le Batard Show, creating a custom roundtable segment focused on the best bets of the week. The segment featured a White Castle slider being put into the microwave as a 60-second countdown started with participants giving their crave-worthy commentary on sure fire bets of the week before the microwave ding.
Credits:
Client: White Castle
Jaime Richardson: CMO
Sarah Paulson: Director of Retail Marketing, Innovation, and Licensing
Aaron Lahman: Digital Marketing Manager
Marie Cottrell: Senior Brand Manager
Tyler Smigelski: Brand Manager
Creative Agency: GSD&M
Creative Directors: Jessica Zalaznick, Wade Alger & Clay Hudson
Assoc Creative Director: Kyle Kimball
Art Directors: Adam Stockton & Kaitlyn Peterson
Senior Writer: Shannon Gill
Senior Art Directors: Jayme Ray & Leslie Hung
Jr Art Director: Jaycee Jamison
Jr Writers: Jacob Rubenstein, Dalia Rubinowicz & Tanyah Chambers
Lee Newman: CEO
Jay Russell: Chief Creative Officer
Keisha Taitt: Chief Cultural Insights Officer
Peggy McCann: Chief Media Officer
Joe McCaffrey: SVP Head of Social Media
Kate Rush Sheehy: Co-Chief Strategy Officer
Dave Zwickerhill: SVP Analytics & Innovation
Coley Platt: VP & Group Account Director
Nic Giron: Account Supervisor
Kangsan Kim: Associate Director Project Manager
Maddie Mashewske: Project Manager
Social Team: Jessica Peltzman, Alice Kozdemba, Daeron Brodie & Brendan Ek
Strategy Team: McKenna Carpenter & Shannon Shultz
Production Team: Linda Jackson, Nina Xoomsai & Chloe Singer
Production Company: RadicalMedia
Director: Steve Miller
Executive Producer: Rebecca Niles
Staff Producer: Tracie Mochizuki
Producer: Carla Tate
Service Production: radioaktiveFilm
Executive Producer: Sasha Bevka
Head of Production: Eugene Mikhailyuk
Producers: Amy Prickett Bidding & Michelle Woodward
In-House Production Coordinator: Bogdana Grabovska
Editor: Tiffany Burchard
Post-Production & Audio: Omnicom Studios
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