Benjamin Bratt and Gael García Bernal is joining the cast of "Coco," a Pixar original movie that centers on a Mexican boy's musical dream. The setting of the movie takes place in Mexico and during the country's annual holiday, Dia de Los Muertos or Day of the Dead.
Prior to this month, there weren't many details about Coco's plot. But Entertainment Weekly visited Pixar recently and learned more details about the movie, which they revealed.
"Coco" centers on a 12-year-old boy named Miguel Rivera, living in a loud and lively Mexican village, who has a musical ambition but unfortunately belongs to a family of shoemakers that hates music. His family, probably the only family in the village who doesn't like music, believes music has cursed them as Miguel's great-great-grandfather left his wife, Miguel's great-great-grandmother, to pursue his own music dreams.
Miguel's grandmother, Imelda, took over the family business, that's presently thriving, and said music is dead to the family. Miguel's music ambition was inspired by his favorite singer, Ernesto de la Cruz, who's already dead. The boy took action to follow his idol after discovering they have a link.
Miguel's actions caused him to stumble upon the Land of the Dead, where the souls of his deceased family members and the soul of his idol reside. With the help of a friendly spirit, Miguel hopes to get the blessings of his family and meet de la Cruz before time runs out.
Bratt will be playing Miguel's idol while Bernal will be playing the friendly spirit that the boy will meet in the Land of the Dead named Hector. Lee Unkrich, the director of "Coco" and who also directed "Toy Story 3," said that Bratt was cast for the show early on.
They had a problem in casting Bernal because Unkrich was afraid Pixar Chief John Lasseter wouldn't find him funny enough. "Thankfully, our casting director said, 'Have you seen this new show that Gael's in?' And it was Mozart in the Jungle, and I started watching and thought, 'Oh my God, he's so funny, he's so charming, and he's perfect.' So, thank God for Mozart. It didn't take any convincing on John's part," Unkrich said.
Miguel will be played by newcomer Anthony Gonzalez, who will also be doing his own singing in them movie. Actress Renée Victor also joins the cast as Miguel's grandmother Abuelita.
Though "Coco" is about music, it's not a musical film, according to /Film. But it could still be Pixar's most musically oriented feature to date.
And with a cast that features Bratt and Bernal, the film would be interesting to watch. Pixar's "Coco" is scheduled to be released in November 2017.
