The Play Maker

The LEGO Group has announced its latest LEGO® Playmaker, actor and play maestro Jason Momoa, who is on a mission to help reverse the growing play deficit impacting families globally.
While parents universally recognise the importance of play, modern pressures on time and attention leave less room for it than ever before. Nearly 9 in 10 (89%) parents wish they could play more, with one in 10 (9%) – over 60 million families globally - admitting they don’t play together at all.

But the findings should also provide reassurance to parents. The research found that just five hours of family play a week is enough to significantly boost family happiness and wellbeing. That’s less time than many families spend watching TV or scrolling on phones each week.

Mission: Never Stop Playing

However, globally, almost half (44%) of families aren’t playing together enough to reap these vital benefits. The LEGO Group’s latest Never Stop Playing campaign is setting out to close this gap with Playmaker Jason’s help. His mission - encouraging families to rediscover the joy and power of playing together. His masterplan - revealed in a fun, public service announcement-style video. His tool - a brick click, the simple act of clicking two LEGO bricks together to open a world of playful, creative possibilities.

Jason is turning his playful mindset into powerful motivation for families: “Play has always been a big part of my life. My mom encouraged me to get outside, use my imagination, build things with my hands, make cool LEGO builds, be creative, make music, climb, explore, and just be curious about the world. That shaped who I am.

Whether I’m with my kids, making movies or jamming with my band, these simple moments of play keep me creative, grounded and connected to the people I love. Even a few minutes of play can completely shift your day. I think it’s important that kids and families today get the same encouragement to find any opportunity to play and spark moments of imagination, creativity and connection.”

The play paradox: more important than ever but harder to find.
Jason’s PSA couldn’t come at a better time. The research, conducted among 30,000 parents and 15,000 children aged 5 – 12 globally, found that while parents increasingly recognise play as essential for children’s wellbeing and happiness, work, screentime and household chores are squeezing it to the margins. One in five families also cite cost (17%) or lack of safe spaces (23%) as barriers to more family playtime.

At the same time, families are spending more time on screens than playing together each week, highlighting the growing competition for attention in modern life.
The stakes of not playing enough feel high for parents. With 61% saying their child plays less than they did when younger, almost three quarters (>70%) worry that the current play drought will significantly impact their child’s future success and wellbeing.
Children feel the impact too. Over a quarter (28%) say they are not happy with how much they play, while a staggering 21% are not playing at all.

When families do play though, it brings them superpowers – over 9 in 10 parents say it builds stronger family bonds (93%), helps their child make sense of the world (92%) and builds crucial skills like resilience, creativity and confidence (93%) that help children thrive today and in later life.