Disney’s live-action adaptations of its animated classics have, for the most part, been incredible successes both as films and at the box office. However, its next live-action movie adaptation won’t get the chance to do the latter as Pinocchio is going straight to Disney+. But as the first full Pinocchio Disney+ trailer shows, that doesn’t mean it’s not pulling out all the stops.
If you want to instantly capture the hearts of everyone, casting Tom Hanks is a good first step, and the actor seems as charming as ever as he tackles the role of Geppetto, Pinocchio’s creator and father. The film seems to follow pretty closely with Disney’s original animated classic, though the world feels a bit grander and bigger under Robert Zemeckis’ direction. He is, of course, known for grand films and pulling fantastic performances out of Tom Hanks in films like Forrest Gump and Cast Away.
The rest of the cast is fantastic as well with Pinocchio played by Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Jiminy Cricket, Cynthia Erivo as the Blue Fairy, Keegan-Michael Key as “Honest” John, Lorraine Bracco as Sofia the Seagull, a new character, and Luke Evans as The Coachman. Rounding out the cast are Kyanne Lamaya as Fabiana and Jaquita Ta’Le as her marionette Sabina, Giuseppe Battiston as Stromboli, and Lewin Lloyd as Lampwick.
Live-action Pinocchio will debut on Disney+ on September 8. Get your tissues ready. And note that this is a completely different movie than Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio on Netflix.
