Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Loki Season 2 Episode 1, so read at your own risk!
The post-credits scene of the second season premiere of Loki revealed Sylvie's mysterious fate following the events of the first season finale where she killed He Who Remains and unleashed the branched timelines which resulted in huge chaos in the TVA.
Sylvie arrived in 1982 Broxton, Oklahoma in a branched timeline and spotted a McDonald's branch nearby. She decided to enter inside and curiously looked around.
After seeing a lot of people happily eating together, Sylvie decided to order everything on the menu.
As shown by the post-credits scene and the promotional materials that they released prior to the premiere, McDonald's will have a significant role in the second season and it won't just be a one-off product placement that films and TV shows typically do.
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Why McDonald's Has a Significant Role in Loki Season 2 According to the Producer
In an interview with Fast Company, Loki executive producer Kevin Wright explained how they came up with the idea of incorporating McDonald's into the story of the second season.
It all started when they were figuring out how they'd move forward with Sylvie following the events of the first season finale.
"When we stayed in the view of character, this woman who went on the run as a child, had been running through time, a fugitive of time, living in apocalypses, never being able to relax or slow down, the novelty of walking into a 1980s McDonald’s looked appealing," Wright said.
"You play a Little League game and go to McDonald’s. You go to a kid’s birthday party at McDonald’s. Someone like Sylvie would never have experienced that, and would be really taken by that."
Wright admitted that he was initially worried about what McDonald's would feel about their potential involvement in the series. Luckily, Marvel Studios is already in partnership with the fast food chain which made it easier for them.
"I was worried that McDonald’s would think we wanted to do something ironic or make fun of them. But we were selling an earnest story, a love letter to nostalgia through a character’s eyes who will see all of the novelty and joy of it," he said.
"When I pitched it, our internal team said, ‘Uh, you realize we have a partnership with McDonald’s already, right? The fact we’re going to them wanting to do something makes it even better."
There is some cynicism you can take in surrounding McDonald's involvement in the new season whether it's product placement/commercial, crossover between two major brands, or corporate agenda.
If we based on Wright's words, it sounded like they had good intentions with incorporating vintage McDonald's and making it a pivotal part of Sylvie's journey in the season. It also helps that the audience right now also has a strong hold on nostalgia.
It's interesting to see where the following episodes will go regarding Sylvie's life at 1982 McDonald's and how she'll also be pulled back into action which will inevitably happen.
New episodes of the second season of Loki premiere every Thursday night on Disney+.
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