Tom Hanks is all greyed out and mustachioed for his role as the wood-carver Geppetto for Disney+’s forthcoming live-action adaptation of Pinocchio. In the children’s story, Geppetto not only creates the puppet but he also takes care of him like a son.
Pinocchio will tell the classic tale of a wooden toy who wants nothing more than to be a real boy, as originally penned in Carlo Collodi’s The Adventures of Pinocchio. It’s just one of two Pinocchio film adaptations set to hit streamers later this year, as Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson’s stop-motion animated version will debut on Netflix in December.
The full cast of Pinocchio features Benjamin Evan Ainsworth (The Haunting of Bly Manor) as the voice of Pinocchio, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Pinocchio’s guide Jiminy Cricket, Cynthia Erivo as the Blue Fairy, Keegan-Michael Key as “Honest” John, Lorraine Bracco (The Sopranos) as Sofia the Seagull, and Luke Evans (Nine Perfect Strangers) as The Coachman.
Robert Zemeckis co-wrote the script of Pinocchio with Chris Weitz, who also wrote Disney’s 2015 retelling of Cinderella starring Lily James. The two produced the film alongside Derek Hogue, Andrew Miano and Paul Weitz. Jackie Levine, Jack Rapke, Alexandra Derbyshire and Jeremy Johns served as executive producers.
Hanks has worked with Zemeckis several times throughout his career, including in the films Cast Away, Forrest Gump, and The Polar Express. Zemeckis is best known for his work as the director of Back To The Future and Death Becomes Her. The director also previously worked with Gordon-Levitt in The Walk. His most recent work was the adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Witches (2020), starring Anne Hathaway. In addition to Pinocchio, his other forthcoming project is The King with Dwayne Johnson set to lead.
Pinocchio will premiere exclusively on Disney+ in September.