'Pinocchio' Trailer: Robert Zemeckis' Live-Action Remake Starring Tom Hanks Comes To Disney+ In September

Jiminy Cricket! Early morning viewers of Good Morning America! on May 31 were rewarded for their good sleeping habits by being shown a trailer for “Pinocchio,” Disney’s forthcoming remake of their classic 1940 animated film.

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If ever there were a moment for a cast and crew to garner excitement for a movie, this would be one of those times. Directing the film is the great Robert Zemeckis, best known for the “Back to the Future” trilogy, “Forrest Gump” (more on this in a second), and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” Zemeckis co-wrote the script with Chris Weitz, whose writing credentials more recently include the 2015 live-action adaptation of “Cinderella” and “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”  

Amongst the film’s cast are luminaries the likes of Tom Hanks, an actor whose stature is beyond legendary and who worked with Zemeckis on several other films, including “Forrest Gump.” Hanks will be playing Geppetto, the sweet and big-hearted woodcarver who raises Pinocchio as if he were his own son. Joining Hanks will be Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, as the voice of Pinocchio, the wooden puppet who has been gifted life by The Blue Fairy, this time played by Emmy, Grammy, and Tony-award-winning Cynthia Ervio. Rounding out the cast will be Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Keegan-Michael Key, and Lorraine Bracco, respectively voicing the characters of Jiminy Cricket, “Honest” John Worthington, and Sofia the Seagull (a new character in Pinocchio lore).

Originally published in 1851, “The Adventures of Pinocchio,” written by Carlo Collodi has since entered the pantheon of classic children’s novels, having inspired countless TV and film adaptations, most notably Disney’s 1940 film, “Pinocchio.”

“Pinocchio” will stream exclusively on Disney+ on September 8.