In case you hadn’t heard, comedian and self-proclaimed Pop-Tarts fan Jerry Seinfeld has taken it upon himself to co-write, star in, and make his feature film directorial debut with Unfrosted, a look back at the creation of everyone’s favorite toaster pastry.
Except none of it is true.
Well, almost none of it, anyway. Nearly the entire story is a complete fabrication, a product of Jerry’s unbridled — and, admittedly, frequently hilarious — imagination. Sure, it takes place in the early 1960s, when cereal companies Post and Kellogg’s competed with each other for toaster pastry dominance, but “The rest of it,” by Jerry’s own admission, “is complete lunacy.”
Understandably, when the folks over at Kellanova heard about it, they couldn’t help but teach Jerry a valuable lesson about trademark infringement.
So Pop-Tarts sprung into action and invited Jerry in for an important meeting with the executives and captured it on camera. The digital short illustrates just how quickly things can get out of hand when you don’t have control over your own creations. Jerry may love Pop-Tarts, but he may have bitten off more than he can chew, here.
We start off with Jerry sitting at one end of a long conference table, snacking on some Pop-Tarts toaster pastries and facing off against Pop-Tarts executives — including their mascot Tarty. Pop-Tarts “president” Kellman P. Gasworth confronts Jerry, explaining that he’s there because he made a Pop-Tarts film without consulting them first, as Tarty asks if he knows anything about trademark infringement.
Before Jerry realizes what’s happening, Tarty draws back a curtain to reveal a trio of rather familiar faces from his sitcom, trapped in a glass cage of emotion. Let’s see Jackie Chiles argue his way out of this predicament. Jerry is bothered, but maybe not bothered enough; he’s used to Friends stealing his ideas, apparently.
But it doesn’t stop there. The Pop-Tarts logo behind the “president” splits open to reveal a TV screen that begins playing a video as the “president” explains this is their new show, “People in Pontiacs Having Pop-Tarts.” Half-baked idea? Maybe, but they’re trying to make a point here.
Finally, as Jerry explains he’s got a show to perform, the “president” pulls the ultimate Uno Reverse Card on him: He’s stolen Jerry’s stand-up act, too. Sure, he needs to work on his delivery a little bit, but at least he’s making an effort. Like Frankenstein in a sport coat.
So has Jerry learned his lesson? Will he ever dare make another Pop-Tarts biopic? Are Schmoopie and the Soup Nazi destined to spend eternity banished to the Phantom Zone with Jackie Chiles? The answers to these questions are “Who Knows?,” “Probably not,” and “We hope so, because we’d definitely watch that.”
Check out the digital short above, and catch Unfrosted when it hits Netflix on May 3.
