Updated

Updated · Deadline · Aug 15

Benjamin Bratt Confirms Coco 2 Return for November 2029 as Ernesto de la Cruz Seeks Revenge

Updated

Updated · Deadline · Aug 15

Benjamin Bratt Confirms Coco 2 Return for November 2029 as Ernesto de la Cruz Seeks Revenge

Q: With Coco 2 set for 2029, which returning characters and new themes could make Miguel’s next trip to the Land of the Dead feel necessary?

To feel necessary rather than nostalgic, “Coco 2” will likely need to bring back the characters most tied to Miguel’s identity while giving him a new coming-of-age dilemma. The clearest returnees are Ernesto de la Cruz, now confirmed by Benjamin Bratt, along with Miguel, Dante and key Rivera ancestors such as Héctor and Mamá Imelda, who anchored the first film’s emotional stakes. If Miguel is now a teenager, those family figures can matter in a different way: not just helping him discover where he came from, but challenging who he is becoming. The most credible new engine is Ernesto’s revenge. That gives the sequel a concrete reason to send Miguel back to the Land of the Dead, and it raises the stakes beyond the original mystery plot. Reporting from D23 suggests Miguel may even be forced into some form of uneasy alliance with Ernesto, which could add moral complexity if the film explores celebrity, legacy and whether art can be separated from the person behind it. A teenage Miguel also opens fresher themes: independence from family without rejecting family, the pressure of talent, and how memory changes as generations pass. The first film was about reclaiming hidden truth; the sequel could be about living with that truth in public. Since “Coco” was rooted in Día de Muertos and remembrance, a follow-up may feel most justified if it examines how a family protects its history once it is no longer broken, and how Miguel carries both music and memory into adulthood.

3 articles · Updated · Deadline · Aug 15

D23 brought Benjamin Bratt onstage to confirm he will reprise Ernesto de la Cruz in "Coco 2," which Disney set for a November 2029 theatrical release.
Bratt said the sequel centers on a teenage Miguel, no longer a child, with Ernesto returning "for revenge" after Miguel ruined his career and destroyed his legend.
Disney had first unveiled the sequel in March 2025, and the D23 presentation also revealed that "Coco" will appear in the next Kingdom Hearts video game.
The 2017 original grossed $822.4 million worldwide, including $210.5 million domestically, helping explain Disney's push to extend the franchise.