When asked why Tip wasn’t a featured toy and why Oh, the alien, was the only available toy, McDonald’s mentioned marketing.

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“We have a comprehensive marketing mix in support of the film Home. Tip is featured significantly throughout our in-restaurant signage … and digital-engagement initiatives, as well as in the TV commercial. You are correct that the Happy Meal toys feature Oh. In the movie, Oh changes color when his emotions change. We thought this was a fun aspect of the story to create a unique group of toys for child play and interaction,” Lisa McComb, a McDonald’s representative, told The Root.

It’s too bad McDonald’s didn’t realize that having a toy that represents little black girls could also have been a unique aspect of interaction. Especially if the children interacting with the toy looked like Tip.

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In the world of marketing and entertainment, representation matters. You can take a look at the success of television shows like Empire, Black-ish and Fresh Off the Boat and the fact that people are tuning in to see faces that look like their own. Some may say that Dreamworks and McDonald’s both missed out on a major marketing opportunity when it came to merchandising Tip instead of a bunch of aliens.