- New trailer for Pixar’s Elio has arrived
- Centered around a boy becoming Earth’s ambassador to aliens
- Zoe Saldaña stars in the sci-fi adventure
Disney/Pixar is going intergalactic for its latest original story. The new sci-fi adventure centers around Elio, an alien-obsessed boy who accidentally becomes Earth’s ambassador.
Pixar has a rich history of producing animated films portraying a young kids embarking on wild adventures of discovery.
Coco (2017), follows a 12-year-old boy who is accidentally transported to the Land of the Dead, Luca (2021) is about a sea monster experiencing life on land, and Turning Red (2022) focuses on a teenager grappling with changes in her own body.
Regardless of the main focus being on youngsters, these films managed to capture the hearts of children and adults with their relatable storytelling – something Pixar has excelled at for 30 years.
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Elio is already tipped as one of the most anticipated family films of 2025, but its journey to the big screen has taken a few twists and turns along the way.
Originally set for a March 2024 release, the film’s schedule was pushed back and Domee Shi, who directed Turning Red and Madeline Sharafian, a story artist on both Turning Red and Coco, stepped in as co-directors mid-way through development.
Adrian Molina, who wrote and directed Coco, stepped away from the project, but keeps a director credit for his initial input.
The change was down to Molina needing to move onto a priority project that’s under wraps, but it’s also been suggested that Pixar felt it needed to make the change in order to achieve its specific creative vision for Elio.
What is the plot of Elio?
The action packed official trailer for Elio landed on Earth in late March. In it, we get a better look at Pixar’s new outcast hero and his adventure through space.
Elio tells the story of Elio Solis, a young boy with a big imagination and a love for space. He lives with his Aunt Olga, in a suburban town, but feels like an outsider in many ways.
One day he finds himself being beamed up to the Communiverse – a space station where different alien species meet and discuss cosmic matters – and is mistaken as Earth’s ambassador.
It sets the stage for an out-of-this-world adventure. Maybe we’ll get a cameo from Pixar icon and extra-terrestrial, Experiment 626? Aka…Stitch.
Who is in the cast?
Elio features the voices of Yonas Kibreab as Elio and Golden Globe winner Zoe Saldaña as Aunt Olga.
America Ferrera, who played Gloria in 2023’s Barbie, was originally announced as part of the voice cast back in 2022, but stepped down when the film experienced delays.
Ferrera was due to voice Elio’s mother, but Pixar had a creative shake-up and decided to put greater focus on Elio’s aunt – which opened the door for Saldaña.
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The full cast hasn’t been revealed yet, but we do know that Jameela Jamil voices Ambassador Questa, an alien that resembles a pink manta-ray and Brad Garrett as Ambassador Grigon, a bulky three-legged alien.
When is Elio released?
Elio beams into theaters in the United States on 20 June, 2025.
It was originally set for a 13 June release, but was pushed back to avoid going head-to-head with Universal’s live-action reimagining of the DreamWorks hit How to Train Your Dragon.
A second teaser trailer was released in November 2024:
