Elio (dirs. Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi)

by Jack Martin | Jun 18, 2025

Certificate: PG

Running Time: 98 mins

UK Distributor: Disney

UK Release Date: 20 June 2025

WHO’S IN ELIO?

Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldaña, Remy Edgerly, Brad Garrett, Jameela Jamil, Shirley Henderson, Matthias Schweighöfer

WHO’S BEHIND THE CAMERA?

Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi (directors), Julia Cho, Mark Hammer and Mike Jones (writers), Mary Alice Drumm (producer), Rob Simonsen (composer), Jordan Rempel and Derek Williams (cinematographers), Steve Bloom and Anna Wolitzky (editors)

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

A young boy (Kibreab) is mistaken for Earth’s intergalactic ambassador…

WHAT ARE MY THOUGHTS ON ELIO?

People like to dunk on Disney a fair bit – often for good reason – but a severely under-hated aspect is its marketing. More often than not, the trailers put out for some of their biggest releases almost seem as though they’re intentionally setting out to undermine the actual film, either misrepresenting the overall tone or embarrassingly trying to appeal toward a younger and more online crowd (case in point: that Zootropolis 2 teaser they just released – I mean, the movie might turn out fine, but seriously, what the hell was that?). No wonder, then, that there’s little to no real excitement for them anymore, and that unless they’re specific IP they bomb hard at the box office.

Pixar, especially in recent years, has fallen victim to Disney’s somewhat self-destructive marketing. Even for financial hits like Inside Out 2, Pixar’s trailers have lacked the animation studio’s core innovation and often pandered to audiences with popular music on their soundtracks, regardless of whether it matches the tone, as well as focusing on the wrong aspects that dilute the initial appeal of the movies they’re advertising. And that hasn’t been truer than it is with Elio, the latest Pixar film which has been marketed as an obnoxiously kid-centric movie designed only for very, very young children with short attention spans, when it is in fact way more insightful and even much more mature that you’d suspect from its flashing colours and cutesy designs. In fact, as recent Pixar movies go, Elio is quite a nice little surprise – which makes it all the more frustrating that most audiences will likely skip it, largely because the marketing for it has been so bad (thanks, Disney).

The Elio of the title (voiced by Yonas Kibreab) is a young boy placed in the care of his aunt Olga (Zoe Saldaña) after the death of his parents, but after a visit to the local science museum he becomes obsessed with the possibility of life beyond the stars – and promptly dedicates himself to being abducted by aliens. One day, he finally gets his wish and is whisked away to the Communiverse, an intergalactic society made up of the brightest minds and leaders from across the universe, who all believe Elio to be Earth’s leader and select him to be the planet’s ambassador. However, when Elio is tasked with diplomatically settling a dispute with the tyrannical warlord Grigon (Brad Garrett), which leads to an unexpected friendship with the tyrant’s son Glordon (Remy Edgerly), the young Earthling realises that he’s well beyond his depth.

As with some of Pixar’s most memorable features, Elio’s biggest strength lies in its heartfelt narrative. The premise itself may not be as fresh as, say, toys coming to life or a rat wanting to be a chef, though that doesn’t stop co-directors Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi (the latter known for Pixar’s Oscar-winning short Bao and its Oscar-nominated feature Turning Red) from bringing a sensual amount of energy to the proceedings, as well as a touch of originality in creating this vast and colourful sci-fi environment filled with interestingly designed alien beings and, of course, plenty of stunning animation that is so detailed you can practically see all the hairs all over certain creatures. The script, as written by Julia Cho, Mark Hammer and Mike Jones, certainly hits more than a few familiar beats, but they’re done with enough warmth and true dramatic weight that you’re very much invested in the story, despite knowing much of the outcome.

Most importantly, the filmmakers give their audience plenty of reasons to enjoy spending time with these characters. Not only are they likeable and strongly written, with even the comic relief figures knowing when to come and go without disrupting the overall flow, but at times even utterly endearing, especially as the friendship between Elio and his eyeless slug-like new mate Glordon goes from one strength to the next.

The writers also get some intriguing mileage out of the fact that the main character is a child with an overactive imagination and a striking overconfidence in the world(s) around them, which in lesser hands could have made the film more challenging to sit through for any adults not used to such behaviour, but they factor in some genuine emotion with this kid, specifically his inability to socialise or make any friends due to his hyper obsession – to where one could make an argument that Elio may indeed be neurodivergent, even if they never spell that out in the movie – which makes him captivating to watch as he learns a bit more about himself and what truly matters.

Any real criticisms, other than the general familiarity of the overall plot, are relatively minor, though at times you may be wondering how much the film may have changed during its slightly rocky production (TL;DR version: Sharafian and Shi replaced original writer-director Adrian Molina fairly late in the game, with rewrites and even a bit of recasting also in play after the 2023 industry strikes delayed the initial release date).

But they really don’t hinder Elio from being a genuinely sweet and heartwarming film that shows how much Pixar can still score some winners in an age of Hollywood uncertainty – and how much Disney seriously needs to sort out its inner marketing problems, because what they’re selling in the trailers is far from the obnoxious distraction it appears to be advertised as.

SO, TO SUM UP…

Elio is a genuinely sweet and heartfelt family film from Pixar that boasts a generous amount of the animation studio’s signature compassion and creativity, as well as lovable characters who are easy to follow on familiar but reliable journeys, but sadly one shouldn’t be surprised if it underperforms at the box office, due to Disney’s marketing which appears to be selling a much less introspective film than it actually is.