‘Turning Red’ Will Premiere March 11 on Disney+

Pixar’s next film will open on Disney+.

Disney and Pixar’s Turning Red will premiere on March 11 on Disney+. Many thought Turning Red would be the turning point for Pixar as it would return to theaters. That is not the case and it is likely Lightyear will be the film that returns Pixar to theaters. But remember that isn’t a guarantee either.

“Disney+ subscribers around the world enthusiastically embraced Pixar’s Academy Award-winning ‘Soul’ and the critically-acclaimed “Luca” when they premiered exclusively on the service and we look forward to bringing them Pixar’s next incredible feature film ‘Turning Red’,” said Kareem Daniel, Chairman, Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution. “Given the delayed box office recovery, particularly for family films, flexibility remains at the core of our distribution decisions as we prioritize delivering the unparalleled content of The Walt Disney Company to audiences around the world.”

Turning Red seemed like a candidate for Disney+ since its first teaser when it didn’t specify that the film would be “in theaters.” The marketing of Turning Red — and a lot of Disney projects lately — are relatively vague due to the potential move to Disney+.

I think the obvious reasons that sealed Turning Red to Disney+ were the fact that Encanto didn’t become popular until it was on Disney+ (granted the film had a short theatrical window and was placed in a busy time). Also, animated family films haven’t performed super well at the box office and there are always the lingering COVID factors.

The official synopsis: Pixar’s Turning Red is about 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!

Turning Red is directed by Academy Award® winner Domee Shi (Pixar short Bao) and produced by Lindsey Collins.

Turning Red releases on March 11 exclusively on Disney+.

Zach Perilstein is the Editor-in-Chief of the Boardwalk Times