Pixar Shares ‘Mama Coco Remembers,’ Revisiting Coco’s Musical Heart
Pixar’s October 27 clip offers a reason to revisit Coco—and how its filmmakers and cast connected music with family memories.
The short answer: Pixar’s October 27 clip offers a reason to revisit Coco—and how its filmmakers and cast connected music with family memories.
In this article
Pixar published “Mama Coco Remembers,” an official clip from Coco, on October 27, 2026. For viewers returning to the film, there’s a detail worth listening for: “Remember Me” was designed to change meaning depending on how it was sung, without changing its melody.
Coco follows Miguel, an aspiring musician whose family opposes his love of music. His journey into the land of his ancestors brings him an unexpected friend, Héctor, and a chance to uncover the stories behind his family’s traditions. Mamá Coco is Miguel’s great-grandmother.
The voice behind Mamá Coco belongs to Mexican actor Ana Ofelia Murguía, whose career extended across film, television and theater. Her credits included roughly 70 plays and 90 films—a substantial body of work beyond the Pixar character.
One melody, different meanings
In a January 2018 Fresh Air interview, director Lee Unkrich explained that the original idea was to give performer Ernesto de la Cruz a big, showstopping signature number, then bring it back later in a different form. Songwriters Bobby Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez supplied “Remember Me,” meeting a challenge that shaped the story.
And they really were excited by the challenge of coming up with a song that could retain the same melody but that would feel very differently depending on how it was sung. Lee Unkrich, Fresh Air, January 10, 2018
That gives returning viewers something specific to listen for: not just the tune, but what each performance makes it mean. Speaking to Screen, Unkrich cited the Coen brothers’ O Brother, Where Art Thou? as a model for weaving music into a story rather than making a traditional Broadway-style musical. He called “Remember Me” “the bedrock of the story.”
Family memories behind the performance
Anthony Gonzalez, who voices Miguel, drew on his own family to understand the character. Speaking to RogerEbert.com in February 2018, he said the similarities between Miguel’s relatives and his own helped him find the emotion in a scene. During recording, he imagined himself in Miguel’s circumstances, with the directors helping him understand what the boy was feeling.
Remembrance had a personal meaning for Gonzalez, too. He said he began celebrating Día de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, at six, after the death of his grandfather. His grandfather had supported him, told him jokes and believed in his future. Gonzalez described the celebration as a way to remember him and feel connected to him again.
Family life also guided the filmmakers’ research. Unkrich told Screen that families in Mexico welcomed the team into their homes, fed them and shared their Día de Muertos traditions. Spending time with those families, he explained, helped keep the story grounded—a foundation in everyday life for Coco’s journey into a fantastical world.