Disney Revealed A First Look At Coco 2 & Miguel Is A Teenager

Coco is one of those movies everyone seems to have a visceral reaction to. I, stupidly, saw the 2017 Disney-Pixar film when I was about six months pregnant with my second daughter, and I’ve never cried harder in my life. The beautiful film won two Oscars and grossed over $800 million at the box office, so it’s safe to say everyone loved it. And that love and fandom for the movie has inspired Disney to create a sequel. And now, we finally have a first look at our main character, some hints about the storyline, and a less vague release date than “2029.”

We first learned about Coco 2 in March of 2025, when Bob Iger announced it at a shareholders’ meeting. If you’re feeling a bit of a theme with sequels, you’re on the right track. Disney, and Disney/Pixar movies especially, have found great success over the years with sequels (much better than the ‘90s, when we just got terrible direct-to-video sequels). Toy Story 2 seemed to be the first one that really hit back in 1999, and they’ve just kept coming — especially sequels that seem to come years after a movie has hit cult status, like The Incredibles 2 and Inside Out 2 in recent years.

For a while, we didn’t hear much else...until now. At this year’s Disney fan convention, D23, the creatives behind the film shared a first look at Miguel, who looks so grown up in his denim jacket and fade haircut.

It’s good to see that not everything has changed, though. He still has Dante by his side and his guitar on his back. But what’s in store for Miguel this time around?

What is Coco 2 going to be about?

After the reveal of Miguel’s new character art at D23, Benjamin Bratt took the stage to confirm he’ll reprise his role as Ernesto de la Cruz. He even gave some hints about the plot, completely in character.

“He’s a little menace who ruined a career and destroyed a legend,” said Bratt. “Ernesto de la Cruz is back for revenge… proving that fate has twists.”

And so far, that’s all we know! While we can assume we’ll be returning to the Land of the Dead in some capacity, there’s a whole lot that can happen in Coco 2.

As of now, no firm details have been released about the movie's plot. That said, there are plenty of fan theories already circulating online. Commenters on a post about the potential storyline speculate that Coco 2 will focus a lot more on Miguel’s little sister, maybe even replacing him with her as the main character (though this newly revealed character art focused on Miguel makes that seem unlikely). Another theory posits that maybe Miguel and Hector will visit other cultures’ afterlives, which would honestly be so cool.

No matter what the plot includes, Coco 2 is sure to be full of beautiful, vibrant animation and the most gorgeous songs. If you remember the end of Coco, Mama Coco has now passed and is reunited with her parents in the Land of the Dead. But in the “real” world, Miguel now has a baby sister, Socorro. Maybe she’ll have some of her great-great-grandfather Hector’s musical talent, too? I’d also personally love to see more of Hector’s legacy and how it has changed the world since the truth about Ernesto came out. Maybe Ernesto has a living relative who’s ready to confront Miguel and his family?

Coco 2 will be directed by Lee Unkrich, who directed the first Coco, and will be produced by Mark Nielsen, a Pixar veteran known for Toy Story 4 and Inside Out 2, Variety reported. So whatever happens, you know the story will be good (and tug on your heartstrings, just like the first film).

When does Coco 2 come out?

When the sequel was announced, all we knew was that it would be out some time in 2029. At D23, we learned the movie is slated to premiere in theaters in November 2029. So, it’s not a precise Coco 2 release date, but we’re getting there.

I know, I know; 2029 is a long time to wait. But if the first Coco proves anything, the sequel is 100% going to be worth it. And it’s going to make you sob.