Hanks stars as Geppetto in the live-action remake of the classic 1940 Disney film, streaming on Disney+ September 8.
Tom Hanks, fresh from the “Elvis” premiere at Cannes, directs the live-action remake of Disney+’s “Pinocchio,” which airs Sept. 8 as part of Disney+ Day. Hanks plays Geppetto, the puppeteer who wishes for a son. Cynthia Erivo stars as the blue fairy who grants Geppetto’s wish and transforms the Pinocchio puppet into a real boy, voiced by 13-year-old Benjamin Evan Ainsworth. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays animated narrator Jiminy Cricket. Lorraine Bracco, Luke Evans and Keegan-Michael Key also star. Watch the first teaser for the film below.
Based on the 1883 Italian book by Carlo Collodi and the 1940 Disney film, the live-action “Pinocchio” has been in development since 2015. While a slew of writers and directors were once attached to the project – including including “Paddington” director Paul King — longtime Hanks collaborator Robert Zemeckis took over directing duties. The “Back to the Future” and “Polar Express” scribe is co-writing the script alongside “Wonka” screenwriter Simon Farnaby and 2015’s “Cinderella” writer Chris Weitz.
The trailer marks the first major change for the live-action “Pinocchio”: the blue fairy sings the famous ballad “When You Wish Upon a Star”, a tune that originally belonged to Jiminy Cricket. Showing off the voice of Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award-winning Erivo, who plays the Blue Fairy, is a no-brainer for the film, with Erivo donning Blue Fairy makeup before later becoming green as Elphaba for Universal Pictures’ “Wicked.”
As for Disney+’s ‘Pinocchio,’ the film shouldn’t be confused with Netflix’s ‘Pinocchio’ adaptation directed by Guillermo del Toro. The stop-motion animated feature will premiere in December 2022 and will star David Bradley as Geppetto. Ewan McGregor voices Sebastian J. Cricket, the fantasy tale’s narrator. Newcomer Gregory Mann is the titular “real boy” Pinocchio, with Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, Christoph Waltz and Tilda Swinton rounding out the cast.
A long-time mainstream director pushing the visual vanguard of Hollywood storytelling, Zemeckis embraces more live action here than in recent CG-dominated family folk tales like “The Polar Express” and “Christmas Carol.” He recently brought another live-action movie based on a children’s story to Disney+ with “The Witches,” released in 2020 and based on Roald Dahl’s novel.
Check out the trailer for Disney+’s “Pinocchio” below.
“Pinocchio” premieres September 8 on Disney+.
Register: Stay up to date with the latest film and TV news! Sign up for our email newsletters here.
Hanks stars as Geppetto in the live-action remake of the classic 1940 Disney film, streaming on Disney+ September 8.
Tom Hanks, fresh from the “Elvis” premiere at Cannes, directs the live-action remake of Disney+’s “Pinocchio,” which airs Sept. 8 as part of Disney+ Day. Hanks plays Geppetto, the puppeteer who wishes for a son. Cynthia Erivo stars as the blue fairy who grants Geppetto’s wish and transforms the Pinocchio puppet into a real boy, voiced by 13-year-old Benjamin Evan Ainsworth. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays animated narrator Jiminy Cricket. Lorraine Bracco, Luke Evans and Keegan-Michael Key also star. Watch the first teaser for the film below.
Based on the 1883 Italian book by Carlo Collodi and the 1940 Disney film, the live-action “Pinocchio” has been in development since 2015. While a slew of writers and directors were once attached to the project – including including “Paddington” director Paul King — longtime Hanks collaborator Robert Zemeckis took over directing duties. The “Back to the Future” and “Polar Express” scribe is co-writing the script alongside “Wonka” screenwriter Simon Farnaby and 2015’s “Cinderella” writer Chris Weitz.
The trailer marks the first major change for the live-action “Pinocchio”: the blue fairy sings the famous ballad “When You Wish Upon a Star”, a tune that originally belonged to Jiminy Cricket. Showing off the voice of Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award-winning Erivo, who plays the Blue Fairy, is a no-brainer for the film, with Erivo donning Blue Fairy makeup before later becoming green as Elphaba for Universal Pictures’ “Wicked.”
As for Disney+’s ‘Pinocchio,’ the film shouldn’t be confused with Netflix’s ‘Pinocchio’ adaptation directed by Guillermo del Toro. The stop-motion animated feature will premiere in December 2022 and will star David Bradley as Geppetto. Ewan McGregor voices Sebastian J. Cricket, the fantasy tale’s narrator. Newcomer Gregory Mann is the titular “real boy” Pinocchio, with Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, Ron Perlman, Tim Blake Nelson, Burn Gorman, Christoph Waltz and Tilda Swinton rounding out the cast.
A long-time mainstream director pushing the visual vanguard of Hollywood storytelling, Zemeckis embraces more live action here than in recent CG-dominated family folk tales like “The Polar Express” and “Christmas Carol.” He recently brought another live-action movie based on a children’s story to Disney+ with “The Witches,” released in 2020 and based on Roald Dahl’s novel.
Check out the trailer for Disney+’s “Pinocchio” below.
“Pinocchio” premieres September 8 on Disney+.
Register: Stay up to date with the latest film and TV news! Sign up for our email newsletters here.