Netflix announces cast of Guillermo del Toro’s stop-motion musical Pinocchio

Newcomer Gregory Mann takes on the role of Pinocchio, Ewan McGregor plays Cricket and David Bradley (Harry Potter, Game of Thrones) stars as Geppetto.

The cast also includes Tilda Swinton, Christoph Waltz, Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things), Cate Blanchett, John Turturro (The Batman), Ron Perlman (Nightmare Alley), Tim Blake Nelson (Watchmen), and Burn Gorman (Torchwood, Enola Holmes).

“After years of pursuing this dream project, I found my perfect partner in Netflix" del Toro said. "We have spent a long time curating a remarkable cast and crew and have been blessed by continuous support from Netflix to quietly and carefully soldier on, barely missing a beat. We all love and practice animation with great passion and believe it to be the ideal medium to retell this classic story in a completely new way."

Del Toro's version of Pinocchio is based on the original classic Carlo Collodi tale, as the film follows the story of a puppet wooden boy brought to life by Geppetto's wish upon a star. Set during the rise of Fascism in Mussolini’s Italy, the tale is "a story of love and disobedience as Pinocchio struggles to live up to his father’s expectations".

The film is directed by del Toro, who also wrote the script with Patrick Hale, and Mark Gustafson (Fantastic Mr. Fox). He will also produce alongside The Jim Henson Company’s Lisa Henson.

The song lyrics are by del Toro and Katz, with music by Alexandre Desplat who will also write the score.

The film’s puppets are being built by Corpse Bride's Mackinnon and Saunders.

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