The first full-length Turning Red trailer was released, and in it, we see our first look at the mystical connection to red pandas that seems to plague Mei Lee’s family. But could this family quirk be the disaster Mei thinks, or could this be the inner growth that Mei doesn’t know she’s missing?
The trailer kicks off with Mei narrating that she wears what she wants, talks the way she wants, and has a group of friends who seem equally supportive and confident with who they are and what they like – especially when it comes to the boy band 4*Town.
According to Turning Red director Domee Shi, if you set a 13-year-old girl’s coming-of-age story in the early 2000s, it’s pretty much mandatory to include a boy band. “We needed our character Mei to be obsessed with something that her mom would not approve of,” said Shi. “Boy bands were the first step into the world of boys for a lot of girls that age. The guys were all super pretty, polished, soft, and loving, and they had a way of bringing girls and their besties together. Plus, I thought it’d be really cool to create an animated boy band.”
As Mei drifts off to sleep one night, she appears to have a nightmare that leads her to wake up in red panda form, leaving her to panic and navigate through the changes of her ‘new’ life. Watch the full trailer below.
MUSIC
For Pixar’s first-ever boy band, 4*Town, filmmakers called on GRAMMY®-winning singer-songwriters Billie Eilish and FINNEAS to write the fictional band’s songs—three in total, including the song “Nobody Like U” featured in the new trailer.
“When we first started talking about Billie Eilish and FINNEAS—back before they’d won a billion GRAMMYS—we could see then how they had their finger on the pulse,” said producer Lindsey Collins. “We were big fans. We met with them and pitched this crazy idea of a boy band, asking if they’d be interested in writing and producing the songs. They were!”
GRAMMY®-, Oscar®- and Emmy®-winning Swedish composer Ludwig Göransson (“Black Panther,” “The Mandalorian”) is composing the score for “Turning Red.” “I’ve been a fan of his for a while,” said Shi. “We were drawn to his versatility—he’s a composer, but he also produces pop music. We knew he would help us create a very unique sound.”
VOCAL CAST
- Rosalie Chiang – Mei Lee
- Sandra Oh – Ming Lee (Mei’s mother)
- Orion Lee – Jin Lee (Mei’s father)
- Wai Ching Ho – Grandma.
- Mei’s tight-knit group of friends are voiced by
- Ava Morse – Miriam
- Maitreyi Ramakrishnan – Priya
- Hyein Park – Abby
- Tristan Allerick Chen – Tyler (classmate)
- Addie Chandler – Devon (Mei’s secret crush).
Providing the harmonious voices of the members of 4*Town are Jordan Fisher, Grayson Villanueva, Josh Levi, Topher Ngo, and Finneas O’Connell. Rounding out the voice cast are James Hong, Lori Tan Chinn, Lillian Lim, Mia Tagano, Sherry Cola, Sasha Roiz, and Lily Sanfelippo.
SYNOPSIS
Disney and Pixar’s “Turning Red” introduces Mei Lee (voice of Rosalie Chiang), a confident, dorky 13-year-old torn between staying her mother’s dutiful daughter and the chaos of adolescence.
Her protective, if not slightly overbearing mother, Ming (voice of Sandra Oh), is never far from her daughter—an unfortunate reality for the teenager.
And as if changes to her interests, relationships, and body weren’t enough, whenever she gets too excited (which is practically ALWAYS), she “poofs” into a giant red panda! Directed by Academy Award® winner Domee Shi (Pixar short “Bao”) and produced by Lindsey Collins, “Turning Red” releases on March 11, 2022.
JOIN US LIVE
We’ll be hosting a YouTube Live TONIGHT November 17 at 10:00 PM ET / 7:00 PM PT to chat all about the official trailer — join us directly on YouTube.
