NEW YORK: Toy makers have gone to the toilet for their latest creations.
Mattel, a company best known for its clean-cut Barbie dolls, is set to release a game called Flushin’ Frenzy that sends a brown plastic poop flying into the air.
Rival Hasbro, whose water-squirting game Toilet Trouble was a hit last year, stuck with the potty humor this year and released Don’t Step In It, a game where players are blindfolded and have to avoid stepping in poop that’s molded out of a clay-like substance.
Toy analysts and experts say the potty-related toys are hitting stores now because of the popularity of the poop emoji, which has also made it more acceptable for parents to buy poop toys for their kids. At the New York Toy Fair this weekend, toy makers showed off poo-shaped action figures, squishy toys and other creatures from the toilet.
“Yeah, poop is a theme,” says Juli Lennett, the toy analyst at market research company The NPD Group. “Kids think it’s funny.”
Sticky the Poo, a squishy likeness with eyes, clings to walls and ceilings when thrown. The company behind it, Hog Wild, also sells a rainbow version called Sticky Unicorn Poo. Its Sticky the Plunger is sold separately.
There’s poo for collectors, too. Flush Force, by toy maker Spin Master, sells 150 nickel-sized mutant critters that kids can collect. Poopeez, meanwhile, makes tiny squishy collectibles with character names such as Pooji, Skid Mark and Dumpling.
Poopeez are aimed at boys aged 7-years-old and up, says Ashley Mady, who created Poopeez and works for toy company Basic Fun. But she thinks the appeal will spread.
“We really believe poop is for everyone,” she says.
Toy makers turn to the toilet for poop-inspired toys
Toy makers turn to the toilet for poop-inspired toys
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Will Smith brings ‘Pole to Pole’ docu-series to Dubai for Middle East premiere
- Star takes part in live onstage Q&A session alongside Allison Fong, Richard Parks, Bryan Fry
DUBAI: Global star Will Smith walked the blue carpet in Dubai on Monday for the Middle East’s premiere of National Geographic’s “Pole to Pole with Will Smith,” marking the regional launch of his seven-part global exploration series.
The event was held at the SEE Institute in The Sustainable City Dubai, the region’s first net-zero emissions building, and brought together government officials, regional celebrities, content creators and sustainability advocates.
Following a private screening of the first episode, Smith took part in a live onstage Q&A session alongside Allison Fong, Richard Parks and Bryan Fry, three of the experts involved in the series.
Five years in the making, the cinematic docuseries follows Smith’s travels from the ice fields of Antarctica to the Amazon rainforest, the Himalayas, African deserts, Pacific islands, and the Arctic, exploring both extreme environments and the people who study and protect them.
Faris Saeed, the founder and chairman of SEE Holding, said the series “reminds us that progress is not only about how advanced we become, but by how deeply we remain connected to our humanity and our planet,” adding that future cities must bring people and nature closer together.
The premiere was produced by KS Konnect, the strategic consultancy founded by Kris Fade and Sarah Omolewu.
Omolewu said hosting the event in Dubai was “deeply meaningful” and reflected both the city’s status as a cultural hub and Smith’s commitment to purpose-driven storytelling.
“Pole to Pole with Will Smith” will air on National Geographic on Jan. 13 at 8 p.m., on National Geographic Abu Dhabi on Jan. 14 at 9 p.m., and will be available to stream on Disney+ from Jan. 14.
