--- title: Everyone Has Ideas For What Should Chuck E Cheese Do Next description: As Chuck E Cheese files for bankruptcy, everyone has ideas for what the animatronic mouse should do next. canonical: https://time.com/5854254/chuck-e-cheese-memes/ author: Melissa Locker article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-06-17T15:50:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:01:29.249Z og:title: What Should Chuck E Cheese Do Now? Everyone's a Career Counselor With Ideas of Their Own og:description: As Chuck E Cheese files for bankruptcy, everyone has ideas for the animatronic mouse's next act og:url: https://time.com/5854254/chuck-e-cheese-memes/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt89ea1c14ef6948e9/698a0f63457a5228bed64191/Chuck-E-Cheese-Memes.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: best Chuck E Cheese memes og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What Should Chuck E Cheese Do Now? Everyone's a Career Counselor With Ideas of Their Own twitter:description: As Chuck E Cheese files for bankruptcy, everyone has ideas for the animatronic mouse's next act twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt89ea1c14ef6948e9/698a0f63457a5228bed64191/Chuck-E-Cheese-Memes.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # What Should Chuck E Cheese Do Now? Everyone's a Career Counselor With Ideas of Their Own > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=73fe99bb-408e-4031-bb66-7ecf817dc79b&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1) by [Melissa Locker](https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Jun 17, 2020 3:50 PM UTC  Logo and sign on facade of Chuck E Cheese's children's activity company in Dublin, California, July 23, 2018. Logo and sign on facade of Chuck E Cheese's children's activity company in Dublin, California, July 23, 2018. Smith Collection—Gado/Getty Images by [Melissa Locker](https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Jun 17, 2020 3:50 PM UTC Chuck E. Cheese, the pizza shop known for its party spaces, ball pits, and animatronic house band, may be close to having to file bankruptcy, but fans of the chain’s namesake [mascot](https://time.com/5405221/gritty-mascot/) mouse are already planning for its second act. Like many restaurants, the pizza chain has struggled as coronavirus-related [lockdowns](https://time.com/5854243/coronavirus-lockdown-impact-children/) shuttered establishments. Since the chain was known more for its convivial atmosphere than its food, Chuck E. Cheese could not rely on takeout orders to stay afloat. While they reportedly tried to take a swing at the delivery market by [changing their name to Pasqually’s](https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2020/05/19/i-ordered-pizza-from-pasquallys-which-is-chuck-e-cheese-in-disguise/) Pizza and Wings on delivery apps, the clever efforts did not translate into financial stability. Now, according to the [_Wall Steet Journal_](https://www.wsj.com/articles/chuck-e-cheese-in-talks-with-lenders-about-financing-deals-11591549377), CEC Entertainment, the parent company behind the brand, is nearly $1 billion in debt and is trying to approach lenders for a $200 million loan to keep the business afloat. As news of the potential bankruptcy loomed, longtime fans who had grown up with the backwards-hat wearing mouse (or even his predecessor [the New Jersey rat in a hat](https://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/04/chuck-e-cheese-mascot-to-be-given-younger-hipper-makeover/)) grew concerned and decided to play career counselor for the potentially out-of-work oversized rodent. Soon enough the hashtag #WhatsNextForChuckECheese was trending on Twitter as people opined about the often-animatronic mouse’s job prospects, new ways a man-sized mouse can fill his leisure time, and ideas for new uses for the potentially abandoned pizza parlors. Suggestions ranged from working at an Amazon fulfillment center, living out his _Ratatouille-_inspired dreams of becoming a chef in Paris, taking photos in New York’s Times Square with [other mascots](https://newsfeed.time.com/2012/06/14/most-sued-mascot-heads-back-to-court/) for $5 a pop, or being given up for adoption at his local animal shelter. Many people suggested that Chuck would be hanging out with another former [mascot](https://time.com/5664044/2020-summer-olympics-mascot-miraitowa-meaning/)—[Geoffrey the Giraffe](https://time.com/5326396/toys-r-us-geoffrey-giraffe-goodbye/) from Toys R Us. Here are a few ideas for the mouse’s potential future: > [](https://twitter.com/MrRaceBannon/status/1272907421632126978) > [](https://twitter.com/GillettTheBest/status/1272925914020614145) > [](https://twitter.com/1Bensopinion/status/1272908321629093889) > [](https://twitter.com/mercedesnickoye/status/1272949833725329408) > [](https://twitter.com/SwellAlexander/status/1273013797377183745) > [](https://twitter.com/MatPatGT/status/1272971555132313601) > [](https://twitter.com/yessirocks7/status/1272947948205174784) > [](https://twitter.com/kitwalkersbitch/status/1272972639074729985) > [](https://twitter.com/RisaAndy/status/1272913208660148224) > [](https://twitter.com/MisAnthroPony/status/1272996760974172161) > [](https://twitter.com/TrueBluBrewCrew/status/1272910055889870848) > [](https://twitter.com/TeaWithTammy1/status/1272936830518743040) > [](https://twitter.com/MorrisAnimal/status/1272908851214454791) > [](https://twitter.com/JamesFTierney/status/1273028858296532997) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5854254/chuck-e-cheese-memes/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5854254/chuck-e-cheese-memes/"},"headline":"What Should Chuck E Cheese Do Now? 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