McDonald’s created the fictional advertising world called McDonaldland.
McDonaldland provided a shared setting for characters such as Ronald McDonald, Mayor McCheese, Grimace, and the Hamburglar. The concept helped McDonald’s turn individual commercials into a connected fantasy world aimed especially at children and families.
The characters and locations appeared in television commercials, in-store materials, playground designs, and other promotional media. This approach made the restaurant brand feel like more than a logo or menu: it gave McDonald’s a recognizable cast and setting that could recur across campaigns.
McDonaldland is sometimes used loosely to describe the characters themselves, but the name properly refers to the fictional world or setting. Its popularity peaked in the 1970s and 1980s, although individual characters continued to appear afterward.