135 Fun Facts About Coco

In Coco's opening scenes, what does Abuelita keep piling onto Miguel's plate?

Tamales: when Miguel politely says no, Abuelita asks again in a tone that makes him change his answer, a first taste of how firmly she runs the Rivera household.

Which vehicle, hidden in nearly every Pixar film, drives past Miguel's window in Coco?

The Pizza Planet truck rattles down the street with its radio playing, and Abuelita shuts the window on the music before Miguel can enjoy it.

What is the name of the Mexican town where the Rivera family lives?

The Riveras live in Santa Cecilia, a fictional town named for Saint Cecilia, patron saint of musicians, a quiet joke for a family that bans music.

What trade does Mamá Imelda take up after banning music from the family?

Making shoes: as Miguel tells it, Imelda could have made candy or fireworks, but she chose shoes, taught each new generation the trade, and the workshop has held the Riveras together ever since.

How does Miguel teach himself to play guitar despite the family ban?

Watching a VHS documentary of his idol: Miguel plays along to old Ernesto de la Cruz footage in a secret attic hideout lined with memorabilia, because no music is allowed downstairs.

What happens to Miguel the moment he strums Ernesto de la Cruz's guitar?

He becomes invisible to the living: he can no longer reach anyone alive, yet he can suddenly see and talk to the skeletal dead, his own late relatives among them, who are visiting for the holiday.

Why is Mamá Imelda barred from crossing to the living?

Imelda cannot cross because Miguel removed her photo from the ofrenda, breaking the frame and taking the picture; only the dead whose photos are displayed may visit the living.

What does Mamá Imelda smash with her boot after an agent says she cannot cross?

A computer: Imelda calls the machine a 'devil box' that tells nothing but lies and flattens it with the boot she has just pulled off, a shoemaker's weapon of choice.

In Coco, what do other skeletons tease Héctor for supposedly choking on?

A chorizo: the musicians rehearsing for Ernesto's show greet Héctor as 'Chorizo', a nickname he hates, and he insists he did not choke at all.

How did Ernesto de la Cruz really get his partner's songs?

The truth is that he poisoned him and stole them: Ernesto laced a farewell toast with poison and took Héctor's songbook, passing off 'Remember Me' as his own.

Where does Ernesto have Miguel and Héctor thrown after seizing Héctor's photo?

Ernesto's guards throw Miguel and Héctor into a cenote pit, a deep water-filled sinkhole, where they are stranded until Imelda arrives on Pepita to pull them out.

How is Ernesto de la Cruz finally undone at his concert in the Land of the Dead?

Ernesto is crushed by a falling bell: with his confession broadcast on the stadium screens, Pepita flings him into a bell tower, and he ends exactly as he did in life.

What had Mamá Coco kept all those years that finally proves the truth?

Mamá Coco had kept Héctor's letters and the torn photo corner showing his face; the letters hold his handwritten lyrics, proving Héctor wrote the songs Ernesto claimed.

What does Abuelita brandish to drive the plaza mariachi away from Miguel?

Her sandal: Abuelita's chancla is her weapon of choice, waved at the mariachi who offers Miguel his guitar and later thrown at Dante the street dog.

'Remember Me' was written by which songwriting team, also behind Frozen's 'Let It Go'?

Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez wrote 'Remember Me' to be sung two ways with the same words: as a showman's big farewell number and, quietly, as a private goodbye.

Which recurring Pixar in-joke code appears on an office door in Coco's Land of the Dead?

A113 was the number of an art-school classroom where many Pixar animators trained, so they slip it into their films; here it also turns up on a record sleeve in Miguel's attic.

Who composed Coco's score?

Michael Giacchino composed Coco's score, and orchestrator Germaine Franco made repeated trips to Mexico to record local musicians for it.

Miguel's dog Dante is what breed?

Dante is a Xoloitzcuintle, the ancient hairless dog of Mexico, which Aztec tradition held could guide souls through the underworld, fitting for Miguel's spirit guide.

What is the name of the colourful perforated banners strung across the streets in Coco?

Papel picado is cut by driving chisels through a stack of tissue sheets, dozens at a time, so a single pass yields a whole string of matching banners.

Pedro Linares said alebrijes, Coco's spirit-guide creatures, first came to him how?

In a fever dream: Linares said that while very ill he saw fantastical beasts shouting the nonsense word 'Alebrijes!', and once recovered he set about building them in papier-mâché.

Who voices Miguel in Coco?

Anthony Gonzalez, a Los Angeles schoolboy, was first hired only to record temporary dialogue for Miguel before the filmmakers gave him the part itself.

Why was Emilio Fuentes, who played Miguel in Coco's early years, replaced during production?

His voice deepened with puberty: Emilio Fuentes had been Miguel through a couple of years of development, long enough to grow out of the part before the final recording.

Which Mexican actor voices Héctor in Coco?

Gael García Bernal voices Héctor, then recorded the part again himself for the Spanish-language release, so audiences in Mexico hear the same actor.

What job is Miguel doing in the plaza when a mariachi lends him his guitar?

Miguel is shining shoes when the mariachi hands over his guitar and dares him to sign up for that night's music contest, moments before Abuelita storms in.

Which Mexican artist makes a cameo in the Land of the Dead, voiced by Natalia Cordova-Buckley?

Frida Kahlo appears in the Land of the Dead rehearsing a surreal opening act for Ernesto's concert; earlier, Héctor disguises himself as her to try to sneak across to the living world.

How big a part does Pixar's good-luck charm John Ratzenberger have in Coco?

One word: Ratzenberger says a single 'Gracias!' as Juan Ortodoncia, a skeleton remembered by his dentist, because Lee Unkrich refused to be the director who broke his Pixar streak.

The Associated Press called Coco one of the largest US productions ever to feature what?

An all-Latino principal cast: the film cost at least $175 million, and Lee Unkrich said that finding a Latino boy who could act and sing as Miguel was vitally important.

Coco premiered in October 2017 at a film festival in which city in Michoacán?

Morelia hosted the premiere on 20 October 2017, a week before Coco opened across Mexico; co-director Adrian Molina said the team was honoured to launch it in the country it celebrates.

In pesos, Coco overtook which superhero film as Mexico's biggest?

The Avengers had been Mexico's top earner in pesos until Coco passed it within weeks of opening, a Pixar film toppling a Marvel one from the same Disney stable.

Which folk song does Imelda sing on stage at Ernesto's big concert?

'La Llorona': chased onto the stage by Ernesto's guards, Imelda sings to cover herself, and Ernesto turns it into a duet so he can get close enough to snatch Héctor's photo.

Coco surprised analysts in 2017 by becoming Pixar's highest-grossing film in which country?

China: Pixar's films had never caught on there as they had elsewhere, yet Coco took several times the studio's previous best and China became its biggest market outside North America, ahead of Mexico.

Coco was released in US cinemas alongside a 21-minute featurette starring which Disney character?

Olaf's Frozen Adventure ran before Coco in US cinemas; audiences complained about its length, and it was gone by 8 December, an exit Disney said had always been the plan.

The Rivera family was based on real families the Pixar team stayed with in which two Mexican states?

Oaxaca and Guanajuato: Pixar's team stayed with families there between 2011 and 2013, and the Riveras, several generations ruled by a formidable grandmother, grew out of those visits.

Pan de muerto, the sweet bread left on Day of the Dead ofrendas, is topped with dough shaped like what?

Bones: the strips of dough across the bun are said to stand for the dead, and families set the bread on the ofrenda as food for spirits tired from their journey.

What does Coco's Family Reunions clerk blame for his sneezing?

A dog allergy: when Miguel protests that Dante has no hair, the clerk answers that he has no nose either, and yet here they are.

Day of the Dead ends on 2 November, which feast in the Catholic calendar?

All Souls' Day: Mexican tradition welcomes the spirits of children first, on All Saints' Day, and those of adults a day later.

The bridge between the living world and the Land of the Dead in Coco is made of what?

The bridge to the Land of the Dead is made of glowing marigold petals, the traditional Day of the Dead flower whose scent and colour are said to guide spirits home.

What was the title of the two-minute online film introducing Miguel's dog in March 2017?

'Dante's Lunch – A Short Tail', a two-minute short released online in March 2017, introduced Dante months before Coco; Pixar made it early to pin down the dog's character.

Who announced in March 2025 that Coco 2 was in development?

Disney chief executive Bob Iger announced Coco 2 at the company's annual shareholder meeting in March 2025, with Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina returning to direct.

Which film was Lee Unkrich's first as lead director, before he made Coco?

Toy Story 3: after co-directing Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc. and Finding Nemo, Unkrich took charge and said he was petrified of being remembered as the man who made the bad Toy Story sequel.

Which actress, later seen as Suze Howard in Euphoria, voices Mamá Imelda in Coco?

Alanna Ubach voices Mamá Imelda and does her own singing in the film, before a new audience met her as Suze Howard in Euphoria.

Edward James Olmos, the voice of Chicharrón, played Admiral Adama in which science-fiction series?

Battlestar Galactica: Olmos led the last survivors of humanity as William Adama for four seasons from 2004, a long way from his few minutes as Héctor's grumpy friend.

What is Mamá Coco's full given name?

Socorro is Mamá Coco's given name, and Coco its usual pet form; in Brazil, where 'cocô' means poop, the film went out under the title Viva instead.

Miguel is Imelda's great-great-grandson; what relation is Coco to Imelda?

Daughter: Imelda raised Coco alone after her husband left, taught her the family trade, and Coco's own children grew up under the same rules.

What does Miguel discover hidden in the ofrenda photograph he breaks?

Folded behind the frame, the photo shows a man holding Ernesto's guitar beside Imelda, his face missing, which convinces Miguel that Ernesto is his great-great-grandfather.

Which relative destroys Miguel's guitar after he announces his musical dreams?

It is his grandmother Elena, Abuelita, who smashes his homemade guitar when he declares he will be a musician; he storms off to find another guitar for the talent show.

From where does Miguel take Ernesto's guitar?

Miguel takes the guitar from his mausoleum: he breaks into Ernesto de la Cruz's tomb in the town cemetery and lifts the famous guitar hanging above it.

What act brought the curse down on Miguel?

Stealing from the dead on Día de Muertos brings a curse: the moment Miguel plays what he took, he is stuck among the spirits until someone in his family gives him a blessing.

What condition does Imelda attach to her first offer of a blessing?

That Miguel abandons music: the blessing sends him home on Imelda's terms, never to play again, which he cannot live with, so he goes looking for Ernesto's blessing instead.

Why does Héctor need his photo placed on an ofrenda so urgently?

He is about to be forgotten and fade: only one very old person among the living still remembers him, and once that memory goes he will vanish from the Land of the Dead for good.

Why did Héctor try to leave the musical act he had with Ernesto?

He grew homesick: after months on the road Héctor packed up his songs to go back to his family, and Ernesto, who could not write his own, refused to lose them.

Which revelation from Héctor shows Miguel that the two of them are family?

Héctor lets slip that his daughter is named Coco, and Miguel realises that Héctor, not Ernesto, is his real great-great-grandfather.

Which sequel did Pixar release just before Coco?

Cars 3 came out in June 2017 and Coco in November: of the five features Pixar released from 2016 to 2019, Coco was the only one that was not a sequel.

How do Imelda and Héctor finally bless Miguel as the sun rises?

Imelda and a fading Héctor bless Miguel unconditionally, 'no conditions' in her own words, and he is sent home just as the sun comes up.

At the end of Coco, one year later, whom does Miguel show the family ofrenda?

A year later Miguel introduces his new baby sister to the family ofrenda, which now holds photos of Héctor and the recently departed Mamá Coco.

Pepita's alebrije form has the head of a jaguar and the horns of which animal?

Ram: Pepita's curling horns sit on a jaguar's head, with an eagle's wings and an iguana's tail, and Imelda rides her through the night to hunt Miguel down.

What does Dante's alebrije form add to the dog?

Bird-like wings: late in the film Dante's skin breaks out in bright patterns and he sprouts a pair of small wings he can barely fly with, a true spirit guide after all.

Coco's very first concept centred on what kind of child?

Coco's earliest concept followed an American boy learning his Mexican heritage while grieving his mother; Pixar dropped it for a boy raised inside Mexican tradition instead.

What did cartoonist Lalo Alcaraz call his 2013 poster of a giant skeletal Mickey Mouse, drawn to mock Disney?

Muerto Mouse carried the line 'It's coming to trademark your cultura'; Alcaraz drew it after followers online pressed him for a response to Disney's filing.

What did Pixar do in 2015 with trademark critic Lalo Alcaraz?

Hired him as a consultant: Pixar brought some of its harshest critics inside, and Alcaraz joined a small group of advisers who checked that Coco got Mexican culture right.

Luis Valdez, the voice of Tío Berto, directed which 1987 rock-and-roll biopic?

La Bamba: Valdez, often called the father of Chicano film, told the story of teenage star Ritchie Valens, and thirty years later voiced Miguel's uncle in Coco.

Benjamin Bratt described Ernesto de la Cruz as 'the Mexican' who?

Bratt called Ernesto 'the Mexican Frank Sinatra', adored as much for his star turns in Mexican cinema as for his music, a character modelled on the golden-age idols Jorge Negrete and Pedro Infante.

Which song does Héctor play for his friend Chicharrón just before he fades away?

Héctor plays 'Everyone Knows Juanita' as a last favour to Chicharrón, cleaning up its bawdy words because a child is present, in return for the loan of his friend's guitar.

Which stand-up comedian voices the clerk at the Department of Family Reunions?

Gabriel Iglesias, the stand-up known as Fluffy, voices the harried head clerk who has to explain to the Riveras how a living boy can be sent back home.

Why do the tongues of real dogs like Coco's Dante so often hang out?

They tend to be missing teeth: Pixar's animators learned that hairless dogs like Dante are prone to losing them, which lets the tongue slip out, and wrote the quirk into his character.

Why was Miguel's home town designed with muted colours?

The town was kept muted and small to contrast with the vibrant Land of the Dead, so its riot of colour would hit harder and Miguel would feel hemmed in at home.

How did Pixar make Miguel's guitar playing authentic?

Pixar filmed every piece with GoPros strapped to real musicians' guitars, so the animators could match Miguel's fingering chord for chord.

A tentacle from which character in the 2016 Pixar sequel was reused for Dante's tongue?

Animators borrowed a tentacle rig from Hank, the octopus in Finding Dory, to drive Dante's floppy tongue, which constantly lolls out of his mouth.

What are Coco's afterlife towers built upon?

Ancient pyramids: designer Harley Jessup made each tower a layered history of Mexico, with Aztec and Maya pyramids at the base, colonial buildings above and newer eras on top as the dead keep arriving.

How did Pixar's technical team illuminate the outdoor scenes of Coco's Land of the Dead?

One light with a million points: supervising technical director David Ryu said the renderer treats the whole glow as a single light, while the audience sees a million of them.

Inside what does the band Los Chachalacos smuggle Miguel past a security guard?

A tuba, the big wrap-around sousaphone: turned away for having no invitation, Miguel asks the band for a favour, and once they are past the guard he tumbles out of its bell with a deep toot.

Which feature does Miguel show off as being on one side of his face but not the other?

A dimple: 'Dimple. No dimple,' he demonstrates to Mamá Coco at dinner, and he repeats the routine later for Ernesto himself, who laughs along.

Coco was the first Pixar film without a Pixar short attached since which film?

Toy Story in 1995 was the last Pixar feature to open without a Pixar short; Coco instead came with a 21-minute Disney Animation featurette, which left US cinemas after about two weeks.

Coco was Pixar's first development in what medium?

Virtual reality: Coco VR, unveiled at Facebook's Oculus conference in October 2017, was the studio's first VR project and let friends explore the film's world together.

Which film did Coco dethrone at the US box office?

Justice League had opened a week earlier; over Thanksgiving 2017 it finished second to Coco, and again the next weekend, as the Pixar film held on to the top spot.

Miguel's dog Dante shares his name with what in Ernesto de la Cruz's films?

The hero's horse: in a film clip Ernesto rides his steed and says, 'We're almost there, Dante,' and Miguel gave the stray who follows him around the same name.

In 2017, Coco's US opening was the fourth-biggest Thanksgiving debut behind which three films?

Frozen, Moana and Toy Story 2 were the only bigger Thanksgiving openers; Coco's $50.8 million weekend came after it had already broken box-office records in Mexico.

A year after the truth comes out, what does the sign hung on Ernesto de la Cruz's memorial bust say?

'Forget You' hangs on the bust at his now-neglected memorial, turning his signature song against him, while the tour groups that once admired him stop at the Riveras' home instead.

Which country was the last to get Coco in cinemas, in March 2018?

Japan saw Coco last, nearly four months after the United States, yet still became its third-biggest overseas market with more than $41 million.

One of Miguel's skeleton uncles says Dante looks like what that 'someone dropped in a barbershop'?

A sausage someone dropped in a barbershop is how the uncle sums up Dante when the family refuse to believe that such a scruffy stray could be Miguel's spirit guide.

Miguel admits he thought the Land of the Dead was a made-up thing adults tell kids, like what?

Vitamins: 'Miguel, vitamins are a real thing,' Tía Victoria tells him, and with skeletons strolling past he replies that now he thinks maybe they could be.

RogerEbert.com's four-star review found in Coco 'a touch of' which master of anime?

Hayao Miyazaki came to critic Matt Zoller Seitz's mind for the matter-of-fact way Coco's dead mingle with the living; Pixar's team had in fact named his Spirited Away as an influence.

In Miguel's opening narration, Imelda could have made candy, fireworks or sparkly what 'for wrestlers'?

Underwear: Miguel's narration lists candy, fireworks and 'sparkly underwear for wrestlers' as the trades Imelda passed over when she had to support her family alone.

The 90th Academy Awards, where Coco won twice, were held on March 4, 2018 to avoid clashing with what?

The Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang ran until February 25, so the Academy pushed its ceremony back from the usual late-February slot to the first Sunday in March.

Under what stage name does Miguel enter the music contest in the Land of the Dead?

De la Cruzcito, 'little de la Cruz', is Héctor's teasing name for the boy who insists that the great Ernesto is his ancestor; the stagehand duly calls it out before his turn.

What is Ernesto de la Cruz's famous motto, repeated by Miguel?

Ernesto de la Cruz's motto, 'Seize your moment', is repeated by Miguel from the star's old films and drives the boy's decision to enter the talent show.

What is 'Remember Me' called in Spanish?

'Recuérdame' is the Spanish title of 'Remember Me'; the film itself kept the name Coco in Mexico, while Brazil renamed it Viva: A Vida é uma Festa.

Which two artists perform the pop version of 'Remember Me' over the end credits?

The end-credits pop version of 'Remember Me' is sung by Miguel and Natalia Lafourcade, the American R&B singer and the Mexican singer-songwriter, who also performed it at the 2018 Oscars.

In Coco, Ernesto's version of 'Remember Me' is first heard in what style?

Mariachi: Ernesto belts the song as a brassy showstopper for his fans, though its writers composed it as a bolero-ranchero that would also work sung quietly.

Before Miguel's first performance in the Land of the Dead, Héctor tells him to loosen up with his best what?

Grito, a whooping cry from Mexican folk music, is Héctor's cure for stage fright; Miguel's first try makes Dante whimper, but on stage his full-throated shout wins over the crowd.

At which July 2017 event did Disney confirm who would compose Coco's score?

The D23 Expo, Disney's own fan convention in Anaheim, brought the news on July 14, 2017, along with word that the Frozen songwriters had written a song for the film.

Germaine Franco, who co-wrote songs for Coco, went on to compose the score of which 2021 Disney animated film?

Encanto won Franco a Grammy and an Oscar nomination for her score; on Coco she had orchestrated the music and made repeated trips to Mexico to record local musicians.

Which two Broadway musicals did the husband in the couple who wrote 'Remember Me' co-create?

Avenue Q and The Book of Mormon both won the Tony for Best Musical; Avenue Q took it in 2004 over Wicked, the year's most-nominated show.

Coco director Lee Unkrich made a book about which Stanley Kubrick film?

The Shining has gripped Unkrich since he first saw it aged 12; after leaving Pixar in 2019 he completed a two-volume account of how it was made, published by Taschen in 2023.

Coco's co-director went on to co-direct which later Pixar film?

Elio (2025) began as his own project, announced in 2022; he left it during production and Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi took over, though he keeps a director credit.

Where did Coco's co-director and co-writer study before joining Pixar?

California Institute of the Arts, where John Lasseter and Pete Docter also trained, led him straight to Pixar, where he began as a 2D animator on Ratatouille and within a decade was co-directing.

What is the name of Ernesto de la Cruz's big Land of the Dead concert?

The Sunrise Spectacular is Ernesto's stadium show; when his backstage confession is put up on its giant screens, the crowd turns on him.

Miguel's voice actor later played Diego Castillo in which video game?

Far Cry 6 (2021) cast him as Diego, the 13-year-old son whom Giancarlo Esposito's dictator Antón Castillo is grooming to rule; he supplied the motion capture as well as the voice.

What is Imelda's spirit guide Pepita in the world of the living?

A street cat: in the final scene Pepita's huge winged shadow rounds a corner into the living world and shrinks to a little alley cat, just as Dante turns back into an ordinary dog.

Benjamin Bratt, the voice of Ernesto, earned an Emmy nomination as Detective Rey Curtis on which series?

Law & Order cast Bratt as Rey Curtis, Lennie Briscoe's junior partner, from 1995 to 1999; he left the hit show saying it was time to get back home to his family.

Mamá Imelda's voice actress played Serena in which Reese Witherspoon film?

Legally Blonde cast her as Serena McGuire, a friend of Reese Witherspoon's Elle Woods, and she returned for the 2003 sequel; in Coco the same actress does Imelda's singing herself.

Renée Victor, voice of Abuelita, was best known for playing Lupita on which series?

Weeds gave Lupita, the Botwin family's housekeeper, the upper hand: once she finds out that her boss Nancy is dealing marijuana, she holds the secret over her.

Edward James Olmos, who voices Chicharrón, played which teacher in Stand and Deliver?

Olmos earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination as Jaime Escalante, the real East Los Angeles maths teacher who coached his students through the AP calculus exam.

Jaime Camil, who voices Papá, played Rogelio de la Vega in which US series?

Jane the Virgin cast Camil as Rogelio de la Vega, a vain telenovela idol; in Mexico he had been a real telenovela lead, starring in the hit La fea más bella.

Alfonso Arau, who voices one of Miguel's ancestors, directed which 1992 film based on his wife's novel?

Like Water for Chocolate centres on Tita, forbidden to marry, whose feelings pass into her cooking: her tears fall into a wedding cake, and the guests end up weeping over lost loves.

Richard Marin, who voices a Land of the Dead corrections officer, was one half of which comedy duo?

Cheech & Chong formed after Marin moved to Canada to avoid the Vietnam draft and met Tommy Chong in Vancouver; for Pixar he also voices Ramone in the Cars films.

John Ratzenberger, Pixar's long-running good-luck cameo, is famous as Cliff Clavin on which sitcom?

Cheers had no Cliff Clavin in its pilot script: Ratzenberger, auditioning for another part, pitched the producers a bar know-it-all, and they created the postman for him.

Pedro Infante, an inspiration for Ernesto, died in 1957 in what way?

Infante, a licensed pilot, died in a plane crash on 15 April 1957, when the cargo aircraft he was co-piloting went down after take-off from Mérida, Yucatán, bound for Mexico City.

Natalia Cordova-Buckley, who voices the painter in Coco's Land of the Dead, played Yo-Yo Rodriguez in which Marvel series?

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. made her name as Elena 'Yo-Yo' Rodriguez; by her own account she had almost quit acting before she won the part.

Which masked Mexican wrestling legend poses for a selfie with a starstruck skeleton guard in Coco?

El Santo, the silver-masked star of the ring and of dozens of films, shows his invitation; the guard pulls off his own head and hands it over so his body can take the picture.

What colour is the hoodie Miguel wears for most of Coco?

Red is the hoodie's colour; in the Land of the Dead Miguel pulls up its hood to hide that he is alive, until it slips in front of a patrolman, who raises the alarm.

What is the checkpoint where the dead queue to cross to the living world called?

Marigold Grand Central Station sits at the foot of the bridge to the living world; before anyone may cross, a scanner there checks each departing traveller's face.

Which song does Miguel perform with his whole family at the end of Coco, a year later?

Proud Corazón closes the film: the family that banned music for generations now plays along as Miguel sings to relatives both living and dead.

What nickname does Héctor call Miguel throughout Coco?

Chamaco, everyday Mexican Spanish for 'kid', is what Héctor calls the boy he takes for a stranger, who turns out to be his own great-great-grandson.

Mexican woodcarvers make the folk-art creatures behind Coco's spirit guides from which tree, whose resin is burned as incense?

Copal is a soft local wood, and its resin has been burned as incense since pre-Columbian times; the same fragrant smoke rises in the cemetery in Coco's opening shot.

In Coco's Land of the Dead, the famous painter's avant-garde stage number centres on what?

A giant papaya opens the number, with dancers dressed as the painter herself crawling out of it; Miguel, pulled in as her test audience, suggests it could use some music.

Mamá Coco's memory is fading; by what name does she greet Miguel at the start of the film?

Julio is what she calls him, and Miguel explains in voice-over that she has trouble remembering things; Papá Julio was her late husband, whom Miguel later meets as a skeleton.

Which song beat Coco's 'Remember Me' to the Golden Globe for Best Original Song?

This Is Me, from The Greatest Showman, won the Golden Globe in January 2018, but 'Remember Me' turned the tables at the Academy Awards that March and took the Oscar.

Which DreamWorks film was among the four nominees Coco beat at the 2018 Oscars?

The Boss Baby, with its suit-wearing infant, lost to Coco on Oscar night but still grew into a franchise, with two TV series and a 2021 sequel.

What are the names of Miguel's parents in Coco?

Enrique and Luisa are Miguel's parents; it is Enrique who proudly announces that the boy will join the family workshop every day after school, the last thing Miguel wants.

The orange flower heaped on ofrendas in Coco is known in Mexico by what name?

Cempasúchil comes from the Nahuatl words for 'twenty' and 'flower'; its colour and strong scent are traditionally believed to draw the spirits of the dead to the offerings.

What happens to Miguel the longer he stays in the Land of the Dead?

He gradually turns into a skeleton: bone creeps across Miguel's body as the night goes on, and once the change is complete he will be stuck among the dead for good.

Asked at re-entry to the Land of the Dead if they have anything to declare, what do Miguel's ancestors present?

A living child: 'As a matter of fact, yes,' says his great-grandfather, and the family push Miguel to the front of the queue, at which the arrivals agent's jaw drops off.

Where does Miguel end up right after singing for the guests at Ernesto's party?

In Ernesto's swimming pool: Miguel is singing 'The World Es Mi Familia' to catch his idol's eye when he walks straight off the edge, and Ernesto himself dives in to fish him out.

Miguel is among the party guests in 'Plusaversary', a 2021 Disney+ short from which animated series?

The Simpsons marked Disney+ Day in 2021 with the short, in which Moe's Tavern fills with Disney guests; Miguel turns up alongside Pixar's Woody, Sulley and WALL-E.

What decorates the headstock of Ernesto de la Cruz's famous guitar?

A skull crowns the headstock of the famous white guitar; by the film's last scenes it is on show at the Rivera workshop, where tourists crowd in to photograph it.

In Coco, what name do the dead give to the fate that Chicharrón meets?

The Final Death is Héctor's name for it as his friend fades away; when Miguel asks where he has gone, Héctor can only answer, 'No one knows.'

Which Mexican filmmaker produced The Book of Life, the 2014 Day of the Dead film often compared with Coco?

Guillermo del Toro produced it for first-time feature director Jorge R. Gutierrez; in 2018 his own The Shape of Water won Best Picture on the same night that Coco took its Oscars.

Which two of Imelda's relatives in the Land of the Dead are identical twins?

Óscar and Felipe, Imelda's twin brothers, are voiced by one actor, Herbert Siguenza, and finish each other's sentences: sizing up a footprint, one says 'Size seven...' and the other '...and a half.'

In the 2017 short that introduced him, what does Dante try to catch?

A mysterious moving bone leads Dante on in the two-minute short, which Pixar made early in animation simply to get a better feel for the character.

In January 2023, performers at an EPCOT concert announced that Coco was being developed as what?

A live stage show was the surprise news that singers Mandy Gonzalez and L. Steven Taylor sprang on the audience during the concert; Disney Theatrical Productions is developing it.

Miguel and Héctor sing 'Un Poco Loco' in which Disney park 3D show?

A Coco sequence joined Mickey's PhilharMagic in 2021, sending Donald Duck through the Land of the Dead while Miguel and Héctor perform 'Un Poco Loco'.

In August 2024, a Coco-themed ride was announced for which Disney park?

Disney California Adventure in Anaheim is getting the ride; concept art shows a boat journey, and site clearing was under way by January 2026.

In May 2025, figures of Miguel and Dante were added to which classic Disneyland ride?

It's a Small World reopened for Disneyland's 70th anniversary with Miguel and Dante added to its Mexico scene after a five-month refurbishment.

Which Pixar sea creature appears as a painted carving on a market stall that Miguel drums along early in Coco?

Nemo sits among the brightly painted animal carvings on the stall; the same opening streets also hide Woody and Mike Wazowski among the market's toys and decorations.