Gaining critical acclaim and a Golden Globe® for best actor in a comedy series for his role in Mozart in the Jungle in 2016, Mexican superstar Gael García Bernal now lends his voice to Héctor, in Disney-Pixar's new comedy adventure Coco.
In the film, Héctor, a charming trickster in the Land of the Dead, enlists aspiring musician Miguel’s (voice of Anthony Gonzalez) help to visit the Land of the Living. “He desperately wants to cross the bridge of marigolds on Día de los Muertos,” says co-director Adrian Molina. “But there's a rule that if no one in the Land of the Living is actively remembering you—if no one has put your photo up on an ofrenda—then there's no one in the Land of the Living to receive you and you cannot cross over.”
Unfortunately, Héctor is not well remembered and it’s taking a toll on him. “He’s in pretty bad shape,” says director Lee Unkrich. “He walks with a limp, his bones are yellowing and loose and jangly. One of his ribs is cracked and he wears a bandage around his left tibia. Even when he walks down the street, he tends to drop his limbs—his hand might fall off unexpectedly and he has to pick it up and stick it back on.”