Woo Hoo! How’s this for a holiday treat? Pixar is going to forego a theatrical run for now, and release its latest animated feature, Soul, on Disney+ on Christmas Day! This is us, doing a happy dance.
We’re not the only ones. “We are thrilled to share Pixar’s spectacular and moving ‘Soul’ with audiences direct to Disney+ in December,” said Bob Chapek, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. “A new original Pixar film is always a special occasion, and this truly heartwarming and humorous story about human connection and finding one’s place in the world will be a treat for families to enjoy together this holiday season.”
Without further ado, here’s why you’ll be just as excited as you are:
5 Reasons You’ll Love Pixar’s Soul
- It’s FREE! Well, free if you already subscribe to Disney+. Unlike with Mulan, you won’t have to pay extra. And if you don’t already subscribe, it would make a great Christmas or Hanukkah gift for some lucky “soul.”
- It has a great pedigree: Soul comes from Pete Docter, the Academy Award®-winning director behind Inside Out and Up, and co-director/writer Kemp Powers, playwright and screenwriter of One Night in Miami.
- It has a fantastic voice cast: Together in one movie, you have the voice talents of Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Phylicia Rashad, Ahmir Questlove Thompson, Angela Bassett and Daveed Diggs.
- The music is sublime: It features original jazz music by globally renowned musician Jon Batiste and a score composed by Oscar® winners Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (The Social Network).
- The plot is fun, yet deep: It’s about what makes you…YOU. It revolves around Joe Gardner (Foxx) – a middle-school band teacher who gets the rare chance to play at the best jazz club in town. But one small misstep takes him to The Great Before – a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities before they go to Earth. Determined to return to his life, Joe teams up with a precocious soul (Fey), who has never understood the appeal of the human experience. As Joe desperately tries to show her what’s great about living, he may just discover the answers to some of life’s most important questions.
Soul was originally slated to premiere in June, then was rescheduled to be a Thanksgiving tentpole, with a theatrical release on November 20, 2020. Disney reps say that over the last six months, marketplace conditions created by the ongoing pandemic, while difficult in so many ways, have also provided an opportunity for innovation in approaches to content distribution. With over 60 million subscribers, Disney+ has remarkable reach.
The latest of the Disney tentpoles to hit the small screen, Pixar’s Soul, premiers on Disney+ Christmas Day, and does it ever look like a phenomenal gift!