Of all the handfuls upon dozens of initiatives that director Guillermo del Toro has signed aboard over time but languished in growth hell, no movie has languished extra completely than Pinocchio. It was approach, approach again in 2008 when he introduced his intention to make a film based mostly on artist Gris Grimly’s illustrations from a 2002 publication of Carlo Collodi’s 1883 Italian fantasy novel, The Adventures of Pinocchio. Now, 14 years later, del Toro’s film will lastly develop into a actuality, because of Netflix, and this primary teaser is the proof.

It’s not a protracted teaser—actually, it’s only a fast message from Sebastian J. Cricket (voiced by Ewan McGregor) and the movie’s brand—but it surely’s sufficient to 1) get a way of the attractive artwork type and stop-motion animation that can be used, and a pair of) show that sure, this film is actually within the technique of not simply being made, however really releasing sooner or later. Behold:

The Cricket’s assertion that “it’s a story you may think you know, but you don’t” is certainly a jab at Walt Disney’s beloved but extremely sanitized 1940 adaptation of Pinocchio, which has usurped the a lot darker unique story (the puppet really kills the Cricket early on within the ebook, and its ghost serves as Pinocchio’s conscience). Still, del Toro’s model—which even be a musical, by the way in which—will supposedly be darker nonetheless, because it’s set through the Fascist regime of Nineteen Thirties Italy, or as del Toro put it to the Italian web site Arthive, “When everyone was behaving like a puppet, except for puppets.” As Ron Perlman, who performs the puppetmaster Mangiafuoco, revealed, Pinocchio will even develop into a toddler soldier.

Currently scheduled to premiere this December on Netflix, del Toro’s Pinocchio may even star David Bradley as Gepetto, Tilda Swinton because the Fairy, and Christoph Waltz because the Fox and the Cat (I’m undecided how that’s going to work), in addition to Cate Blanchett, Tim Blake Nelson, John Turturro, Finn Wolfhard, and extra. Newcomer Gregory Mann will voice the titular puppet.

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