Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio to debut at London Film Festival

Guillermo del Toro’s eagerly anticipated Pinocchio movie will receive its world premiere at the London Film Festival in October.

It’s a good time to be a Pinocchio fan, as two version of the story will be heading into cinemas soon.

Robert Zemeckis has directed a live-action remake of the 1940 animated film, with Tom Hanks playing Geppetto, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt voicing Jiminy Cricket. That film will be released by Disney in September.

Then a few weeks later, Guillermo del Toro’s version will receive its world premiere at the 66th BFI London Film Festival, which runs from October 5 to October 15.

Who stars in Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio?

Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio is a stop-motion movie that’s a much darker take on the material, and features a star-studded voice cast.

David Bradley is Geppetto, Ewan McGregor is Sebastian J. Cricket, while the likes of Cate Blanchett, Ron Perlman, Finn Wolfhard, Christoph Waltz, and Tilda Swinton are all voicing characters.

After premiering in London in October, the film will play in select theaters in November, before streaming on Netflix in December, with the official synopsis as follows…

Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro reinvents the classic tale of the wooden marionette who is magically brought to life in order to mend the heart of a grieving woodcarver named Geppetto. This whimsical, stop-motion film directed by Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson follows the mischievous and disobedient adventures of Pinocchio in his pursuit of a place in the world.

What else is playing at the London Film Festival?

London Film Festival movies are still being announced, but the event currently features 23 world premieres, as well as the debut of three TV series.

The shows include The English, starring Emily Blunt, Mammals, starring James Corden, and A Spy Among Us, starring Damian Lewis and Guy Pierce.

Films playing at the festival include Matilda The Musical, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, and Sam Mendes’ Empire of Light. Full details can be found at the official LFF site here.