Ewan McGregor Challenges The Classic Tale In Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio Trailer
What happens when you combine the beloved voice of Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Ewan McGregor with beloved horror fantasy niche filmmaker Guillermo del Toro? A Netflix Pinocchio remake of course.
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What happens when you combine the beloved voice of Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Ewan McGregor with beloved horror fantasy niche filmmaker Guillermo del Toro? A Netflix Pinocchio remake of course. And while we’re certain the upcoming film won’t be very reminiscent of its classic Disney counterpart, the upcoming titular film is sure to thrill and chill viewers next Christmas with its Netflix premiere. To ramp up the excitement for the famed filmmaker’s recent project, Netflix released the first teaser trailer this morning for the upcoming stop-motion musical adaptation of Pinocchio.
See the trailer for yourself below:
Less than a minute long, the short teaser trailer for Pinocchio introduced actor Ewan McGregor as he lends his voice to Sebastian J. Cricket, seemingly once again being the narrator for this rendition of Pinnochio. As the cricket tells the audience that he once lived in the very heart of the wooden boy himself, the animation is reminiscent of old school fairy tales with a James and the Giant Peach vibe, and even draws similarities to other projects helmed by del Toro. While there may have been no sign of the eponymous character in the short teaser, the video was surely enough to ramp up the hype surrounding the film.
Pinocchio is set to boast an ensemble cast featuring Gregory Mann, Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Ron Perlman, Tilda Swinton, Christoph Waltz, Cate Blanchett, Tim Blake Nelson, Finn Wolfhard, John Turturro, and Burn Gorman. Stemming back over a decade ago, Guillermo del Toro first announced plans to bring the wooden boy back to the big screen in 2008. The project was coined a passion project by del Toro himself, as the director once said, “No art form has influenced my life and my work more than animation and no single character in history has had as deep of a personal connection to me as Pinocchio. I’ve wanted to make this movie for as long as I can remember.”
And this story with Ewan McGregor is likely to be nothing like the kid-friendly Disney version, as del Toro has also previously said that his rendition would portray the character as told in Gris Grimly’s darkly whimsical children’s books design renditions of Pinocchio. For reference for those that are unfamiliar with del Toro’s more macabre fairytale takes, a viewing of his 2006 Academy Award-winning film Pans Labyrinth can surely give insight into what will likely be in store for the upcoming project.
According to the plot, the Netflix Pinocchio will boast a similar story to the original fairytale. Set in 1930 Italy during a time when fascism is on the rise as dictator Benito Mussolini takes control of the country, a wooden marionette is magically brought to life in order to mend the heart of a grieving woodcarver. And while adult moviegoers eagerly await to see a darker telling of the beloved fairytale chock-full of Hollywood’s elite such as Ewan McGregor, the wooden wonder is set for a more kid-friendly revamp from Disney as well.
In a completely separate take, the children’s story is the next live-action remake to land on Disney+ in 2022, with Tom Hanks playing Gepetto, Cynthia Erivo as the Blue Fairy, Joseph Gorden-Levitt as Jiminy Cricket, and 13-year-old Benjamin Evan Ainsworth in the titular role of Pinocchio. Similarly, headliner Ewan McGregor is slated to have an epic year. The Star Wars actor is set to helm his famous characters origin series, Obi-Wan Kenobi later this year as well.
