The viral story quickly went viral on Reddit where it was dissected by a number of online pseudo-detectives.

The discovery was defined as some kind of elaborate publicity stunt with strings pulled by KFC and Tall Grass Public Relations (the company Mike works for) and that Mike himself was an accomplice.
The theorists also added Wieden+Kennedy to the mix of masterminds due to their creativity when it comes to publicity.
Mike denied all claims, stating he has no connection to either W+K or KFC. Wieden+Kennedy has worked with the latter of the two on few campaigns but they haven’t taken credit for this particular one (which they definitely would have happened if they were involved, that’s kind of what ad companies do).
Perhaps we’ll never really know for sure, but one fact stays undeniable, no matter what – that oil painting is still absolutely dope!
The appreciation letter

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