Elio
Directed by Domee Shi, Madeline Sharafian, Adrian Molina
Elio, a space fanatic with an active imagination, finds himself on a cosmic misadventure where he must form new bonds with alien lifeforms, navigate a crisis of intergalactic proportions and somehow discover who he is truly meant to be.
Where to Watch Elio
- Alex | Pop Culture Brain20 June 2025Finally a movie that proves: comparison is the thief of joy I saw Pixar’s Elio so here's the good and bad without spoilers It's been a long road to the screen for Elio After multiple rewrites, a year-long delay, and a budget that allegedly ballooned to $300 million But you can hardly tell in the final product Which turned out pretty good The script is well paced with engaging characters and entertaining set pieces There are a number of clever jokes and funny visual gags The story comes with an important message about loss, parenthood, and friendship The outer space visuals especially the aliens are bold and creative And the voice performances are dialed in, even from the younger cast members Now that said, the visual style on Earth is pretty generic The story isn't all that new or original The themes are very overstated - there's no sense of subtext And the story’s resolution felt a bit rushed and convenient I think a lot of people are going to say this a miss for Pixar And when you compare it to the studio’s greatest works Yeah, it's not as good those But that doesn't make this a bad movie As I said before: comparison is the thief of joy And two things can be true: Elio is a pretty good movie. From a studio that has made some of the best animated films of all time Can we be Ok with that or does every Pixar movie have to be a masterpiece?
- griffinkraatz9 April 2026This is one of the best movies I’ve seen Pixar made in years. It’s such a heartwarming and emotional film that asks the main question of “Are we alone?”. The storyline and selection of characters is incredible and definitely made me cry at some parts. I’d definitely consider watching a sequel to this film.
- Megan Cruz30 June 2025I love this movie. It really saddens me to see it lumped in with a general decline of studio animation because it does not deserve that. I recently rewatched Atlantis, one of my childhood favorites, and I was struck by how much it sidestepped the established Disney story formula and instead was deeply emulative of 80s & 90s adventure blockbusters. Frankly, it was as awesome as I remember but for reasons I didn’t even notice as a kid. Elio gave me that same sensation. It brought to mind some of my favorite alien invasion films. It felt like a loving tribute to the entire genre. In the way Paranorman introduces kids to the horror genre, this film feels like it does the same for alien invasion films. Elio is such a funny film, that also made me cry four separate times. It’s exciting & unique & look I’ll admit it. I have a freshly seven year old son who recently told me he feels different from other kids, so I’m not exactly impartial here but who the hell is?? In my opinion, Elio has a rightful place amongst the new era of Pixar greats, Soul, Luca, & Turning Red. More genre heavy, deeply personal explorations that bravely branch out from the tried and true Pixar formula. I think these films are Brave (pun acknowledged) for daring to embrace the new. I foresee Elio developing a cult following much like Atlantis and Treasure Planet, and in another 20 years I’ll still be saying I always loved them all.
Elio Trivia
Elio was released on 18 June 2025.
Elio was directed by Domee Shi, Madeline Sharafian, Adrian Molina.
Elio has a runtime of 1h 38m.
Elio was produced by Mary Alice Drumm.
Elio, a space fanatic with an active imagination, finds himself on a cosmic misadventure where he must form new bonds with alien lifeforms, navigate a crisis of intergalactic proportions and somehow discover who he is truly meant to be.
The key characters in Elio are Elio / Other Elio (voice) (Yonas Kibreab), Glordon (voice) (Remy Edgerly), Olga Solís (voice) (Zoe Saldaña).
Elio is rated PG.
Elio is an Animation, Adventure, Comedy film.
Elio has an audience rating of 8.9 out of 10.
Elio had a budget of US$150M.
Elio has made US$154.3M at the box office.