--- 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: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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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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