Explained: Why is Sebastian J. Cricket in Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio not called Jiminy?

Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio, a fascinating stop-motion animated musical, finally made its arrival exclusively on Netflix on December 9 recently. The movie was previously released in selected theaters on November 9.

One of the most pivotal characters in the animated movie is Sebastian J. Cricket (voiced by Ewan McGregor), who also serves as the narrator for the story.

However, in previous Disney movies, the talking cricket was named Jiminy Cricket. There are certain potential reasons behind the change in the character's name in Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio.

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Potential reasons behind the change in the talking cricket's name in Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio explored

One of the major reasons behind the talking cricket character's name change in Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio from Jiminy Cricket to Sebastian J. Cricket is probably Disney's trademark of the former character's name. However, another significant fact that could play a huge role in changing the talking cricket's name is that the name of the talking cricket in Carlo Collodi's novel is not Jiminy Cricket.

The name Jiminy Cricket is only connected to Disney and Disney Studios' adaptations of the original story. In Carlo Collodi's famous book titled, The Adventures of Pinocchio, the character is known as the Talking Cricket.

It's also quite fitting that the character in Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio has a refreshingly new name due to the other differences in the storyline of the talking cricket from the original story. In Collodi's novel and Disney's adaptation, Pinocchio kills the character with a mallet, and thereafter, the talking cricket returns to the story as a ghost.

Director del Toro, who is critically acclaimed for his horror projects, revealed that he almost killed the character of Sebastian J. Cricket. However, later on, he decided to go with it, giving the character a unique storyline.

There is a specific moment in the new Netflix animated movie, where Pinocchio is seen trapping Sebastian with the help of a mallet. Without a shred of doubt, this is definitely a nod to the original story.

Despite having these differences, Sebastian J. Cricket in Netflix's Pinocchio is quite similar to the character Jiminy Cricket in the Disney adaptation, as he also plays the role of the narrator in the animated movie, and the character is seen singing a captivating song at the very end of the movie as well as over the main credits.

The animated movie is a reimagination of author Carlo Collodi's much-cherished novel, The Adventures of Pinocchio. del Toro and Matthew Robbins have served as writers for the animated movie, while the former has also acted as the screenplay writer for Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio, along with Patrick McHale.

Guillermo del Toro has also served as the director for the movie, alongside Mark Gustafson. The official synopsis for the animated movie, given by Netflix, reads as:

"People are sometimes afraid of what they don’t know… From the mind of Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro and award-winning stop-motion legend Mark Gustafson, GUILLERMO DEL TORO'S PINOCCHIO is a story you think you may know… but you don’t."

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Catch Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio, which is currently streaming on Netflix.