Kevin Bacon Changed His Name To Kevin Bean ― And It’s Weird 

Apparently, Kevin Bacon temporarily changes his name to Kevin Bean on Beansdays (Wednesdays, for those of us not up to date on our bean-based wordplay). But why the beans all of a sudden? Well, the new Mr. Bean has taken on the animal welfare crusade. So, in partnership with Humane World for Animals, they’ve launched a campaign for meatless Wednesdays. The campaign initiative asks and encourages people to consider swapping beans in place of their animal-based proteins each Wednesday to prevent animal deaths and create a more humane society. Hence, Beansday.  

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The campaign launched on June 17, the very first Beansday, and was not only kicked off by Bacon’s name change, but he also donned a suit made from dried beans to advertise the benefits of choosing beans for protein one day a week. He noted the health benefits―beans are packed with protein and fiber―and the cost benefits of beans as one of the cheapest protein sources. But above all, the focus is the push for humanitarian action. “They’re just beans, until you realize how many animals they’ll spare,” Bacon said.  

Marketing Genius, Or Confused Call To Action?

The recent shift toward gimmicky celebrity food campaigns, like the recent campaign for John Cena as Nature’s Own ‘Breaducator,’ feels very forced. Bacon has previously said that he no longer eats goats or pigs since he has a farm of them. His emotional involvement with the species prevents him from being able to consciously eat them. And his shift towards a more overall plant-based lifestyle is no joke, so the collaboration with Humane World for Animals makes sense. What irks me is the way companies or charities are launching campaigns by latching on to a celebrity, putting them in a silly costume like a food-based superhero of sorts, and inventing a word that doesn’t actually make that much sense.  

Whatever happened to the days of to-the-point advertisements that feel sincere? The advertisement for Kevin Bean felt less about his genuine call to action regarding preventing animal deaths and more about the name he adopts one day out of the week. From my point of view, recent celebrity endorsements and the companies’ approaches to them have felt gimmicky to a point where it detracts from the meaning of the cause entirely. Just saying that someone should think about animals getting to live if you eat more beans misses a huge opportunity for Bacon to speak on what actually calls him to the cause. Human experience and connection, after all, is what’s most valuable and likely to cause change. Instead, it reads like a TikTok ad you wouldn’t hesitate to scroll past.  

Sure, the campaign’s got us all talking, but not about the core of the issue the campaign seeks to address. Instead, it’s all about Kevin Bacon’s name change to Kevin Bean that he didn’t actually change at all.