Have you ever asked a question and then wished that you didn't get the answer? That's exactly what happened when a McDonald's manager answered a decades-old question and finally told the public what, exactly, Grimace is.

Grimace, a shapeless, purple blob covered in fur, debuted in the '70s. He started out as a villain in the McDonald's character lineup before eventually becoming a close pal of the franchise's superstar mascot Ronald McDonald. Thanks to his amorphous shape and mysterious origins, people always wondered what he is. However, the McDonald's team stayed relatively mum on the subject. Now we likely know why.

In an interview with CBC, a Canadian McDonald's franchise manager named Brian Bates spilled the tea. "He is an enormous taste bud, but a taste bud nonetheless," Bates explained. Apparently, Grimace's character alludes to the fact that the food you'll get at McDonald's tastes good.

There you have it, folks.

Interestingly, McDonald's mentioned this as a possible origin story before. HuffPost unearthed a 2014 tweet from the company that said the character was either "the embodiment of a milkshake or a taste bud." So the company's stance was already technically down in the history books.

The publication noted that he does kind of resemble magnified images of taste buds. At least they got the science correct?

Nevertheless, the bizarre truth behind Grimace's origin has shocked people on the internet, who disrupted their regularly scheduled scrolling to tweet about the revelation.

One tweet begged the company to "stop sharing." Another claimed that this has been the company's stance for years. Others simply showcased their awe, confusion and genuine concern about the mascot. "I've always wondered about this," one user wrote. "Now I'm horrified."

Others called out the decision to name a taste bud that is allegedly supposed to represent something that tastes good Grimace. "Clearly, the taste bud has sampled the offerings from my local McDonald’s, where the staff gently heat your Big Mac under their armpit for half a shift, then drop kick it into the bag before serving," a user suggested.

Exactly how much can Grimace taste, others wondered. "Theoretically, this means that if you were shake Grimace's hand, he would be able to taste you," someone wrote. And that's the end of that train of thought.

The more you know...

Check out some of Twitter's best responses to this nightmarish revelation below.

Discontinued McDonald's Menu Items

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