Contents
Happy July? On the last day of Pride Month, former Pixar creators claimed the studio removed queer subtext from its latest film, Elio, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Several sources said they were disappointed by cuts that they felt negatively altered original (and openly gay) director Adrian Molina’s version of the animated story, which centers on an 11-year-old boy who is abducted after being mistaken as the intergalactic ambassador of Earth. “For a movie about someone learning, in both literal and emotional ways, that he’s not alone in the universe, Elio has real trouble getting out of its own head,” Vulture critic Alison Willmore wrote of the film, which now holds the record for the lowest-grossing box-office opening in Pixar history after its June 20 opening. What happened here, and does it have anything to do with America Ferrera’s exit from the project?
What was cut from Elio?
Leadership gave notes to make the titular main character more “masculine,” per THR’s report. Some scenes were deleted, including one that the team had dubbed Elio’s “trash-ion show,” in which he shows a hermit crab a pink tank top he had made out of litter on the beach. Shots of pictures on Elio’s bedroom wall that implied that he had a same-gender crush were also removed. “It was pretty clear through the production of the first version of the film that [studio leaders] were constantly sanding down these moments in the film that alluded to Elio’s sexuality of being queer,” a former Pixar artist told THR. Apparently, an alien with no eyes is easier for Pixar to imagine than a queer kid.
What happened with the original director, Adrian Molina?
The filmmaker left the project shortly after screening the film for Pixar leadership. Around the same time, an early test screening in Arizona had yielded less-than-desirable results — the audience expressed that the film was enjoyable, but unanimously said they would not go see it in theaters. And the reaction from Pixar execs seemingly wasn’t great either. THR’s sources said that Molina was rumored to have been “hurt” by feedback he received from Pixar head Pete Docter, though what exactly was communicated during that conversation is unclear.
Click here to preview your posts with PRO themes ››
Ultimately, Pixar announced in August 2024 that Turning Red’s Domee Shi and Burrow’s Madeline Sharafian would take over the project, noting that Molina had a “scheduling conflict.” Multiple creatives who had been working on the film left once the co-directors shared their first new cut, according to former Pixar assistant editor Sarah Ligatich, who offered feedback during the Elio production process as part of of the company’s internal LGBTQ group. “The exodus of talent after that cut was really indicative of how unhappy a lot of people were that they had changed and destroyed this beautiful work,” Ligatich said.
Why did America Ferrera leave Elio?
She was “upset that there was no longer Latinx representation in the leadership” after Molina’s exit, a former Pixar artist told THR. Neither Ferrera nor Molina has offered a public comment. What we do know is that Ferrera had previously been set to play Elio’s mom, Olga, and even made a 2022 appearance at Disney’s D23 fan event to describe the role. Another potential factor in her departure is that she reportedly was called back multiple times to rerecord dialogue as the script changed during rewrites under the new team. In the final film, Olga has become Elio’s aunt and is instead voiced by a woman who is no stranger to discourse-generating movies: Zoe Saldaña.
What’s going on with diversity at Pixar?
In May 2024, Docter drew criticism for telling Bloomberg that the studio would be developing concepts with “clear mass appeal” that are “less a pursuit of any director’s catharsis and instead speak to a commonality of experience.” The remarks were widely taken as an indication that stories featuring diversity would be less of a priority at Pixar. Earlier this year, Pixar’s Win or Lose series scrapped a transgender story line.
Meanwhile, parent company Disney was previously side-eyed for its 2022 response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Following backlash, then-CEO Bob Chapek apologized to employees, insisting he was an “ally” and announcing that the company would pause political donations in Florida. Perhaps attitudes at Disney have changed now that we’re back in Trump’s America? Still, not everyone blames Disney. A former Pixar artist who spoke to THR characterized “a lot” of what happened with Elio as “obeying-in-advance behavior” from Pixar higher-ups, noting, “The call is coming from inside the house.”
