About “Turning Red” in a few words:

“Turning Red” is a heartwarming and hilarious animated movie from Disney and Pixar. The film follows Mei Lee, a 13-year-old girl living in Toronto who suddenly transforms into a giant red panda whenever she gets too excited or emotional. As Mei struggles to control her transformations, she must navigate the challenges of growing up, including dealing with her overprotective mother and finding her own sense of identity. With stunning animation and a charming cast of characters, “Turning Red” is a must-see movie for all ages.

Meet the characters from Turning Red

Tyler

Tyler is that loud, goofy kid who thinks he’s way more chill than he actually is — the kind of guy who skateboard by day and narrates his own life like it’s a sports highlight reel. He’s brash and hilarious, always first to crack a joke or start a ridiculous dare, but somehow also oddly thoughtful when you least expect it (like he’ll show up with a single flower he found on the sidewalk and act like it was a master plan). He probably collects novelty socks and has a bizarre talent for remembering useless trivia about cartoons. Also, sometimes he’s surprisingly gentle with animals? Which makes no sense but is kind of perfect.

Ming Lee

Ming is a tidal wave of rules, tradition, and very serious hugs — the kind of mom who can fold your laundry into perfect paper cranes and then hand you a schedule for your feelings. She’s strict, intense, deeply proud, and loves hard in a way that can feel like a full-contact sport; honestly, you can see the worry written in every perfect hairpin she owns. Under all the order there’s this ridiculous softness — she cries at commercials sometimes, or maybe that was only once, I can’t remember, but definitely once. Also she fights like a tiny octopus, metaphorically, and possibly literally if octopus-sized discipline existed.

Wu Lee

Wu is the ancient, whispery backbone of the family myth — kind of mythic, kind of old-guard energy with a sparkle of mischief tucked in the sleeve. Mysterious, traditional, demanding respect like it’s a right, but with an eccentric sense of humor that sneaks out at the worst moments (she’d scold you and then secretly buy you the exact candy you love). She’s the reason everyone has rules, but also the reason there are the best stories at family dinners; stories maybe exaggerated, or totally true, depending on which aunt you ask. Quirky detail: insists on calling everyone by nicknames nobody else remembers using, which somehow sticks.

Abby

Abby is pure audible energy and 100% committed to friendship, screaming at concerts and inventing new dances in the grocery aisle because why not. She’s fearless, dramatic, and has a heart the size of a stadium, which makes her both the first to cheer and the last to back down from anything (including, like, karaoke battles with stuffed animals). She collects band merch like a dragon hoards treasure and will fight you for the last slice of pizza with theatrical gasps. Also: she cries like four times faster than she laughs, contradictory but true, and honestly it’s charming.

Mei Lee

Mei is a walking hurricane of feelings and sketches and sudden panda transformations — awkward, brilliant, wildly loyal, and always overthinking the small stuff until it becomes huge. She’s a teen tornado who loves boy bands, science projects, and exactly three thousand sticky notes, and somehow balances catastrophic embarrassment with fierce bravery in the same breath. There’s this adorable mess to her: anxious one second, fiercely protective the next, and totally incapable of sitting still when she’s excited (or nervous). Also, she probably has like seven pens in her pocket even though she swears she just needs one.

Priya

Priya is the clever, quietly intense brain of the friend group — calm, very organized, and subtly dramatic if you pay attention, like a cat that will judge you and then steal your chair. She’s smart in a way that’s practical (schedules, lists, emergency snacks) but also slightly theatrical — she will deliver a deadpan line and make it sound like a Shakespearean soliloquy. Low-key competitive but also the person who memorizes everyone’s birthday so she can ambush you with cupcakes at 3 a.m. Sometimes she pretends to be stoic but secretly rewrites text messages a hundred times; human, very human.

Jin Lee

Jin is the dad who tries to be chill and mostly succeeds, a soft, goofy presence with the calming energy of someone who thinks dad jokes are a public service. He’s practical and supportive in a sneaky funny way — will assemble ikea furniture like a zen monk and then be mysteriously proud of a crooked shelf for hours. He loves his family loudly, in quiet dinners and little ridiculous rituals (like wearing sneakers to formal events — don’t ask, it’s a statement). Also he probably whistles off-key but insists it’s “folk music,” which is both endearing and slightly suspicious.

Miriam

Miriam is the low-key queen of quirky fashion choices and unexpectedly wild one-liners — sort of artsy, sort of sarcastic, and very observant in that way that makes her comments hit like a surprise confetti cannon. She’s into retro things, collects pins and hairclips with suspicious intensity, and will solemnly judge your playlist before becoming its biggest fan five minutes later. She gives off “too cool to care” vibes but also organizes care packages like a professional, so, contradictions are her brand. Small weird habit: answers rhetorical questions out loud and then pretends she didn’t, which is adorable and maybe a little sus.