Maybe he's out to get his arch rival Hamburglar, who only two weeks ago stepped out of the shadows, but after a 21-year hiatus in the US, KFC has resurrected Colonel Sanders to lead new spot 'Bucket In My Hand'.
A US-only campaign for the time being, the Colonel's return is also part of a company refresh which includes store refittings and a new menu featuring pulled pork and jugs of 'homemade-style' lemonade.
Interestingly, Colonel Sanders died in 1980 aged 90, so who knows whether he will make a reappearance here. Perhaps he has been cryogenically frozen.
The Colonel will appear in a run of TV ads next week. The legendary figure is backed by a new voice – actor, comedian and SNL regular Darrell Hammond.
KFC's latest results show that it has not been forced to confront the same fiscal problems as other fast food chains, who have been dealing with ongoing weak performance.
KFC has 612 stores in Australia, operating under the Yum! foods umbrella. Its local sales increased year on year, at the end of the latest fiscal quarter (March 21 2015), while operating profit was up 11%. In the US, sales are also up by 7% year on year for the same reporting period.
In February, KFC opened the doors of a new concept store for the 'urban professional' in Sydney, with the chain looking to roll out more of these stores in city areas based on the success of the latest trial.
McDonald's brought the Hamburglar back to life a couple of weeks back as a grown-up hipster dad, to mixed reviews. In the US it saw same-store sales drop 4% and 1.7% worldwide in February alone.
You can watch the spots here:
Email Nicola at nicolariches@yaffa.com.au.