This song was premiered on tour in Cleveland, Ohio. Fans suspected that it would be the fourth single to be released from M A N I A, but it was later announced that “Hold Me Tight Or Don’t” would be released as the fourth single instead. “Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)” was eventually released as the fifth single from the album on Jan. 11, 2018.

The title is a reference to the 2000 film “Cast Away” starring Tom Hanks, in which the main character, FedEx employee Chuck Noland, ends up stranded on an island after a plane crash. One of the packages from the plane contains a Wilson volleyball. After leaving a bloody hand print on it, Chuck draws a face and names this volleyball Wilson. It serves as his only companion during his time on the island.

The music video was set to be released on January 12th, one week before the release of the album, but it was later announced via an Instagram post that the release date had been moved forward one day to the 11th. The post also teased the video, featuring Pete Wentz wearing the outfit he had previously worn in The Youngblood Chronicles, a series of 11 music videos for the album Save Rock and Roll which told one cohesive story. The music video itself contains many references to past music videos in the form of products being sold in an infomercial or on a home shopping channel. The number that appeared throughout the music video, “1-833-OUT-BOYS”, lead fans to an audio message spoken by Patrick Stump.