Elio 2025 Parents Guide

Elio is Rated PG by the Motion Picture Rating (MPA) for some action/peril and thematic elements.

There’s something utterly infectious in Elio’s sheer wonder—from its neon-kissed Communiverse to the pure delight in a kid who leaps toward his alien abduction. Pixar’s latest isn’t just another polished sequel; it’s a vibrant original that celebrates imagination and emotional truth. It breezes past expectations and lands somewhere between cosmic whimsy and heartfelt soul-searching.

The Story & What It Tries to Say

Meet Elio Solis, an 11-year-old with a backyard observatory and a relentless belief that the universe is listening. His lonely existence—exacerbated by misfit status at school and a strict military-base life—is cut short when he’s literally beamed into the Communiverse, an intergalactic assembly of alien species. Mistaken for Earth’s official ambassador, Elio scrambles to navigate complex space politics and an emerging crisis—arms bigger than his imagination.
Beneath the zany visuals and quirky dialogue lies a tender core: a boy grappling with grief, identity, and belonging. His journey reflects Pixar’s courage to confront emotional loneliness, turning sci-fi tropes into a deeply human exploration

Yonas Kibreab captures Elio’s glow of excitement and his jittery heart when he realizes he may be in over his head. His voice is bright yet vulnerable—exactly what this character needed
Zoe Saldaña’s Aunt Olga is a lovely surprise—you sense the tight-laced control hiding layers of love and anxiety. Originally meant to be Elio’s mother, Olga’s aunt role adds a subtle emotional distance that deepens the stakes
Alien sidekick Glordon (Remy Edgerly), a slinky, toothy creature reminiscent of earth-bound larvae, is equal parts goofy and heartbreaking—a delightful twist on the “odd buddy” trope Brad Garrett’s performance as Lord Grigon shifts from lighthearted menace to genuine threat, delivering a curveball villain that cleverly anchors the conflict

Under the stewardship of Domee Shi and Madeline Sharafian—after original director Adrian Molina passed the baton—Elio is a kaleidoscope of fun and feeling They artfully merge influences from Alien, The Thing, Contact, and Close Encounters to reinvent genre staples with warmth and flair
The Communiverse itself is a brilliantly engineered marvel: rotating diplomatic pods, alien biotopes, glowing neon corridors—everything you’d expect in an interstellar UN, yet lovingly unhinged. The pacing feels tight—starting in Earth’s structured rigidity then launching into the unpredictable rhythms of cosmic bureaucracy. It never drags, and it never forgets its emotional grounding.

Sci-fi-wise, Elio gleams. Where abductions are normally horror-soaked, this one is joyous—Elio actually cheers on his own time-freezing seizure by a green light from the sky That inversion of expectation is pure Pixar magic.
Then there’s that eerie side-plot involving Olga—slight horror, creeping paranoia, the unnerving question of whether Elio is really Elio. It draws on The Thing in the best possible way—building tension without derailing the joy
Cartoonish planet diplomacy, a looming threat in Grigon’s war machine, and a beautifully woven emotional arc make it a complete sci-fi meal: sweet, strange, and surprisingly nourishing.

Highly Recommended:

Elio 2025 Parents Guide

Scary Moments & Intensity: There are some scenes that lean mildly intense—especially the moment Elio gets abducted by an alien beam. To us grown-ups, it’s creative and beautiful, but a five-year-old might clutch your arm or hide under a hoodie. Later on, there’s a subplot involving identity confusion and possible body-switching (very The Thing-lite), and while it never turns into horror territory, it flirts with creepiness in a way that might be unsettling for sensitive viewers.

But to be fair, it’s all handled with a Pixar-soft glove. No gore, no violence—just a healthy dose of “Whoa, what’s happening to me?!” energy. Think Inside Out meets Men in Black, with a sprinkle of Coco’s existential heart.

Language: No profanity here. It’s clean—like, Disney+ afternoon-on-the-couch clean. You won’t be answering any awkward questions on the drive home. Dialogue is sharp and often poetic, with a few clever alien word plays and bureaucratic absurdities that fly over kids’ heads but earn adult chuckles.

Violence & Threat: There’s zero traditional violence. No battles, no punching, no weapons used in anger. The villain (voiced brilliantly by Brad Garrett) poses a threat, but it’s more about tension and possible galactic destruction than actual action. Elio himself isn’t a fighter—he’s a feeler, a thinker, and a talker. Honestly, it’s refreshing.

Emotional Themes
Here’s where Pixar does what it does best—and also where parents should be ready. Elio dives deep into themes of grief, identity, and not fitting in. Elio is a lonely kid. He’s lost someone (implied), and he feels weird, even among his peers on Earth. His emotional vulnerability is front and center, and if your child has experienced loss or struggles with belonging, this may hit surprisingly hard. It’s handled with care and catharsis—but yeah, bring a tissue (for both of you).

That said, it’s also hopeful. Elio tells kids: “It’s okay to be strange. Sometimes, strange is exactly what the universe needs.”

Should You Take the Kids?: Absolutely—especially if they’re over 7 or 8 and can handle light sci-fi weirdness with emotional layers. It’s not non-stop laughs or flashy set pieces like Toy Story or Monsters Inc.—this is more reflective, more Soul-adjacent. Younger kids might get restless or confused in slower moments, and some of the deeper themes may go over their heads, but the visuals and characters will still keep them engaged.

For tweens and up? This one speaks to them.

Final Thoughts & Recommendation

Elio is a wildfire of feeling in a neon forest, a film that trusts kids to feel deep and adults to laugh at big-eyed aliens. It’s for dreamers, weirdos, lonely stars in the making—and maybe, just maybe, for all of us who’ve ever dialed the cosmos. Pixar has taken a risk with a sci-fi soul trip, and it pays off in planet-sized delight and emotional altitude.

Families craving something imaginative and heartfelt—without sequels or fairy-tale trappings—will be enthralled. Adults who’ve loved Inside Out, Up, Turning Red, or even Coco will delight in how Elio redefines Pixar’s emotional playground in space.