House of the Dragon hot sauces duel in latest work for BINGE via Thinkerbell

Thinkerbell created the limited edition hot sauces to allow fans to pledge their allegiance to either the Green or Black Councils as they vie for the Iron Throne. The Black Sauce, ‘Dracarys’, for Queen Rhaenyra supporters, features carolina reaper, scorpion, and bird’s eye chilies, with a Scoville rating of 500,000 units. The Green Sauce, ‘Revenge’, for King Aegon supporters, contains green habaneros, charapitas, and jalapenos, with a rating of 35,000 units.

Each bottle is individually wax-dipped and packaged with labels that reflect elements of the feuding councils. Strict safety warnings are included:

‘DO NOT CONSUME IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO SPICY FOODS OR HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR YOU RECTUM WHATSOEVER’, and ‘CONSUMPTION OF THIS SAUCE MAY INDUCE A TRIP TO THE PORCELAIN THRONE’. 

“Ahhh ahh, oh my god. Aaahhhhh, hot-hot-hot-hot!,” said Thinkerbell’s chief creative, Tom Wenborn.

“The idea at its simplest is that dragons breathe fire,” explained Thinkerbell’s head of craft, Keir Vaughan.

“So let’s make hot sauces that are so hot, you breathe fire. Beyond that, we really wanted to get to the core of the bitter feud between Houses and express this as two distinctly crafted label designs that felt iconically representative of both Houses and their Dragon Sauces. Above all, designs that are highly collectable, sharable and loved. And hot ”

An earned media campaign covered the launch across Australian TV shows including Sunday Night with Matty Johns and AFL Bounce, along with pop culture outlets like Man of Many and New Idea.

Fans in Australia have pledged their allegiance to either the Green or Black councils as part of a giveaway of the limited edition hot sauces on BINGE’s social channels. Celebrities, including House of the Dragon cast members Harry Collett and Bethany Antonia, Caroline Gaultier and Krissy Marsh from The Real Housewives of Sydney, St. George Illawarra Dragons players Kyle Flanagan and Jesse Marschke, Cam Mooney and Ruby Schleicher from the AFL Bounce crew, social media stars Luke and Sassy Scott, and Fox League duo Fletch and Hindy, were also invited to pick a side and test the sauces.

“Australia’s reaction to the launch of House of the Dragon season two has been phenomenal,” said BINGE’s marketing director, Fiona King.

“Our creation is set to ignite a legendary feud, and I’m so excited to see the reactions from fans as these sauces will literally make you breathe fire. We invite all fans to choose wisely and settle in with new episodes dropping weekly until Monday 22 July.”

The campaign is the latest in a series of work by Thinkerbell for the Foxtel Group’s streaming platform. In May, the agency launched Scene:Scents, candles designed to burn at a specific speed as a show plays, tied to scenes (including dog pee and the vet’s office) from BINGE Originals like Colin From Accounts, Strife, and The Twelve.

The work also complements BINGE’s overarching I Saw it on BINGE brand platform, established by the Thinkerbell. It released the second instalment of the platform in May with a campaign featuring protagonist Mike finding himself at a wake.