Having conquered the immaterial realm of the spirit world in Soul, Pixar is moving onto more tangible territory for its next animated feature. Luca will tell the story of 13-year-old Luca Paguro and his friend Alberto Scorfano, who enjoy what sure looks like a blissful childhood in rural Italy. It’s got all the earmarks of classic Pixar tale about friendship, acceptance, love and sea monsters. Yes, this being Pixar, there’s always a twist and this is a fun one. Luca and Alberto look like freckle-faced human teens but are actually two mermen taking on human forms. Think Stand By Me meets The Little Mermaid.
And the voice cast! Pixar mastered the art of getting good people behind its microphones a long time ago and they’re at it again here. Jim Gaffigan, Emma Berman, Maya Rudolph and our two stars Jacob Tremblay (Room) as Luca and Jack Dylan Grazer (It) as Alberto. The movie will be available somehow, in theaters or otherwise, at some point this summer.