Coco is full of details that make it a great movie, from its beautiful Day of the ᴅᴇᴀᴅ-inspired setting to its strong themes centered around family and music. It’s left an impressive legacy for the recently announced Coco 2 to try to live up to. Its characters are worth remembering, including Ernesto de la Cruz. While we don’t know much about the sequel yet or what its villain might look like, de la Cruz will be a tough act to follow.
While a large part of what impedes Miguel’s journey home comes down to the conflict over music within the different generations of his family, all of those issues can be traced back to Ernesto de la Cruz. Even outside of that, de la Cruz takes a more active villain role when he realizes that Miguel’s presence and new understanding of the truth about what happened to Héctor in Coco could be dangerous for his continued legacy. An intriguing theory puts his role in a whole new, and dark, light.
Ernesto de la Cruz Might Have Been Planning Héctor’s Death For A While
Ernesto’s Pride And Need For Fame Might Have Pushed Him To Kill Héctor Even If He Didn’t Try To Leave
According to a fan theory from Reddit, Ernesto de la Cruz might have been planning Héctor’s death for much longer than it first appears (via Reddit). It seems like he might have poisoned the bottle long before proposing to share it before Héctor’s departure. It’s possible that de la Cruz had realized that Héctor’s homesickness might lead him to leave him long before it actually happened. He could have poisoned the bottle just in case Héctor ever did try to leave, not realizing that he’d actually use it until the moment it happened.
The fact that he used the plan in one of his films also suggests that it could have been premeditated. While putting a scene that reveals his own actions is risky, Ernesto de la Cruz is obviously a very prideful person. He can’t brag about his successful murder of Héctor, so putting it in a film allows him to show it off, even if he casts himself as Héctor in the role of the hero.
There’s also a chance that de la Cruz would have killed Héctor even without Héctor planning to leave him. In one of Disney’s worst betrayals, he doesn’t hesitate to take credit for Héctor’s songs after killing his former friend. He’s desperate to hold onto Héctor’s songs because he knows how much they elevate his work and his fame, and it’s possible that he would have eventually reached this point even without Héctor’s departure speeding that decision up.
Ernesto de la Cruz Is One Of Pixar’s Best Twist Villains
His Treatment Of Miguel Is Entirely Dependent On What’s Best For His Own Image
This theory makes Ernesto de la Cruz’s villainy seem even darker, as the idea of him planning the murder in advance adds a layer of viciousness to his decisions. If he decided to kill Héctor suddenly out of desperation, his actions could be seen as attempts to cover up a decision he considers shameful and knows could ruin his reputation. However, if he planned Héctor’s murder in advance, the regret that he shows is likely false, and his attempts at covering up the act stem from the same maliciousness that led him to kill Héctor in the first place.
While it’s unclear whether de la Cruz knew that Miguel wasn’t actually his great-great-grandson, what matters is that he realizes that other people want to believe it and that it’s good for his image.
Ernesto de la Cruz’s twist villain reveal works because the sequence of events that lead to the reveal are logical conclusions for the characters to jump to. Though de la Cruz isn’t actually a part of Coco‘s central family tree, Miguel’s ᴀssumption about the guitar makes a lot of sense with what he knows of his family history. While it’s unclear whether de la Cruz knew that Miguel wasn’t actually his great-great-grandson, what matters is that he realizes that other people want to believe it and that it’s good for his image.
The reveal doesn’t feel out of character for what we know of de la Cruz, but it’s easy to feel crushed alongside Miguel while also being happy to learn of his familial connection with Héctor. Ernesto de la Cruz’s villain reveal makes him one of the best movie twist villains because, while he has let us down, we are forced to admit alongside Miguel that we didn’t really know de la Cruz beyond the image of him that Miguel’s hero worship had invented. Luckily for Miguel, the events of Coco lead him to the celebration of a kinder legacy.
Source: Reddit
