Spoiler Warning: This Article Contains Spoilers for Guillermo del Toro's PinocchioMost will be forgiven if they missed Cate Blanchett's bizarre role in Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio. Blanchett's role in Pinocchio is her second collaboration with Guillermo del Toro, following her standout supporting role in 2021's Nightmare Alley. However, the character that she plays in Pinocchio is not easily identifiable.
Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio takes the original 1883 Italian novel and moves the setting to the 1930s, under the historical backdrop of Italian Fascism. The critical elements of the story remain the same, as the woodcarver Geppetto (David Bradley) creates the wooden boy Pinocchio (Gregory Mann) in the image of his dead son Carlo, who is brought to life by a sympathetic Wood Sprite (Tilda Swinton). Despite protests by his guide and conscience, Sebastian J. Cricket (Ewan McGregor), Pinocchio becomes the star of a carnival show run by the shady Count Volpe (Christoph Waltz).
Cate Blanchett Voices Spazzatura (The Monkey)
Count Volpe's sidekick is the monkey Spazzatura, Italian for garbage, who is the character voiced by Cate Blanchett. However, Blanchett's voice isn't easily identifiable as Spazzatura only "speaks" in monkey noises. The only exception to this is a scene where Spazzatura, jealous of the attention Volpe has been giving to Pinocchio, talks to him using her various puppets.
Spazzatura has her character arc through Pinocchio, as Count Volpe repeatedly abuses her. She eventually leaves him and becomes allies with Pinocchio, playing a vital role in the film's climatic rescue of Geppetto and Sebastian from the belly of the dogfish. Pinocchio's epilogue shows Spazzatura remaining with Pinocchio after Geppetto's eventual death.
Why Cate Blanchett's Pinocchio Casting Isn't As Strange As It Seems
Cate Blanchett is not the first actor to voice a predominantly non-verbal animal character, as Alan Tudyk voiced the rooster Heihei in Disney's Moana. Blanchett was cast in Pinocchio immediately after working with Guillermo del Toro on Nightmare Alley, immediately accepting the role of Spazzatura after del Toro mentioned she was the only character yet to be cast in the film. Blanchett went all in with her vocal performance, insisted on doing the voiceover shot-by-shot, and even called the monkey her spirit animal (via MovieMaker).
The fact that Cate Blanchett was actively willing to perform what otherwise could have been a throwaway secondary character says a lot about her willingness to take on challenging roles. Blanchett was already one of the best aspects of Nightmare Alley, and taking the part of Spazzatura in Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio shows she is willing to continue working with the filmmaker, no matter what form it takes. Here is hoping that Guillermo del Toro and Cate Blanchett continue their new and unique working relationship with each other.