If there were ever a way for Pixar to speak to this cultural moment that we’re in, this new 60-second spot for Soul may be it. The commercial doesn’t directly reflect or comment on any of the racial tensions and reckonings that we’ve experienced over the past month but, in that context, you could say this provides an aspiration of what should be.
The summer release now delayed until the Thanksgiving holiday, Soul is the story of Joe Gardner, an African-American music teacher who passes away after a freak street accident. In the afterlife, he goes on a journey to return to this one (or something like that).
But you won’t get any of that here in this new teaser.
Instead, it’s a simple, focused, and heartening celebration of this man’s life (voiced by Jamie Foxx), with him musing about how we all should embrace and cherish every minute of the one we’re given. From Inside Out director Pete Docter, it’s likely to give us all the feels (like his last movie did — literally!).
Barring any more COVID-related shifts in the movie calendar (which, at this point, are not only likely but should be expected), Pixar’s Soul will open on November 20, 2020.
