Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter explains why the Disney-owned company decided to delete LGBTQ themes from its 2025 film Elio.
In a new interview with Wall Street JournalDocter explained that Pixar did not want its film to force parents to have conversations they were not prepared to have with their children. “We are making a movie, not a hundreds-of-million-dollar treatment,” he said.
Hollywood Reporter I previously reported about the lengthy rework Elio, Which highlights the story of a lonely boy who sets out abroad after being mistaken for the leader of the land. The film was originally scheduled to be directed by Adrian Molina, as the main character of Elio was initially portrayed as eccentric. After an early screening in the summer of 2023 in Arizona, where viewers reportedly said they liked the film but no one raised a hand when asked if they would see it in a movie theater, twists have followed.
Molina later exited the project, with co-directors Madeleine Charafian and Domi Shi taking over the film. A former Pixar artist worked on it Elio He said THR Anonymous said: “It was very clear during the production of the first version of the film that [studio leaders] We were constantly taking away these moments in the movie that hinted at Elio’s sexuality for being such a weirdo.
Elio It opened to record low numbers for Pixar, debuting to $20.8 million domestically and $14 million overseas. At the time, the film arrived as Pixar’s first original film racistwhich debuted to $29.6 million domestically in 2023, marking the second-worst three-day weekend start in the company’s history.
Hoppersreleased Friday, is Pixar’s first film Eliowith an expected global debut at the box office of $88 million.
“Over time, I realized that my job was to make sure that everyone liked the movies,” Docter said elsewhere in his book. Wall Street Journal Introductory account.
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