Jamie Foxx on being first African American lead in Pixar movie

Actor Jamie Foxx didn’t know that he is the first African American lead in a Pixar film, and finds it “crazy”.

Foxx has voiced the protagonist in an animated film ‘Soul’, which has been postponed amid the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.

Asked about creating history with the casting, Foxx said: “You know what was crazy? It is.”

“You know what was crazy? I didn’t know that,” ew.com quoted Foxx as saying.

Co-directed by two-time Oscar winner Pete Docter and Kemp Powers, the film will take viewers on the journey of Joe Gardner, a middle-school band teacher (voiced by Foxx) and how he is about to find his true calling.

Having lost his passion for music, Joe seeks the help of a soul named 22 to find his way back and, in the process, learn a lot about himself on a journey of discovery, introspection and self-realisation.

“It talks about the value of getting a second chance,” said the actor.

Talking about his daughter’s reaction on doing the animated film, he said: “She was like, ‘Dad, you finally made it. You’re in a Pixar film!’”

Asked about his animated alter ego, he said: “Oh, man! That’s kind of me, in a sense; the pot belly and the skinny legs. My daughter was like, ‘They got you’.”

Disney has postponed the theatrical release of ‘Soul’. The film was originally scheduled to release on June 19 and is now slated to open on November 20.