No, McDonald's is not introducing a Ouija board-themed Happy Meal

Don’t believe everything you see on the Internet.

The “news” that Halloween-themed Happy Meals containing Ouija boards were about to hit McDonald’s restaurants everywhere did not go over well online.

The source of the rumour was quickly traced back to SyFy’s Amy Bruni, who admitted to joking about the Ouija board-themes kids’ meals on Facebook.

Not everyone, however, was in on the joke. She received an onslaught of hateful comments in response to her original post.

What made her joke seem plausible to some was the artwork that accompanied her Facebook post.

Graphic artist Newt Clements’ “Happy Meals" is a series of tributes to movies and pop-culture figures using Happy Meals boxes. (See them all on Pinterest.)

Because Bruni posted an image of Clements’ Ouija board box without identifying it as the work of a graphic artist, people just assumed it was promotional artwork from the fast-food chain.

It wasn’t.

After parents and other concerned citizens flooded Bruni’s Facebook page with complaints about the Happy Meals — she posted some of the cruelest comments on Instagram — she updated her original post with a winky face, writing “THIS ISN’T REAL.”

In the comments, she continued:

"This is a JOKE. Sarcasm. Satire. Hence the winky face…and the clear ridiculousness of there being a ouija board Happy Meal. And even crazier than that, that I would ever eat at McDonalds. Ok, all done? Phew. Goodnight!"

One Facebook user, shocked by the hateful comments, contacted McDonald’s herself to clarify:

"I missed the winky face too and you were getting such hateful comments I spoke to McDonalds and they confirmed NO they were not. Barbie and Hot Wheels are right now and then comes The Littlest Pet Shop and NFL Madden game toys. No plans for ouija boards," confirmed Gayle Graul Kee.

Before boycotting Big Macs, it doesn’t hurt to do a little research.