Turning Red Alternate Ending Shows Mei Gushing Over 4*TOWN's Robaire
Mei has an awkward fan moment meeting her 4*TOWN idol Robaire on a plane in storyboards for an alternate ending to Disney and Pixar's Turning Red. The 2022 animated comedy starred Rosalie Chiang as Meilin "Mei" Lee, a young Chinese-Canadian girl who inherits her family's ability to change into a giant red panda depending on her emotional state. Turning Red was released on Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD on May 3rd, 2022.
Released on Disney+ on March 11th, Turning Red saw 13-year-old Mei learn that her family had been gifted with the power to turn into a red panda in emotional moments, with her becoming the latest to inherit the power. Mei must learn to control her transformation while balancing her family and social life; a task made more complicated when she and her friends' idols 4*TOWN are set to perform at a concert. With songs written by Finneas and Billy Eilish, that the latter later performed live at Coachella, Mei and her friends' boyband idols are huge factors in the story, with the girls trying to raise money for tickets to their concert, only for them to surprisingly help Mei in the film's final act. However, an alternative ending to Turning Red would have brought Mei face to face with her favorite 4*TOWN member.
As part of the film's home release on Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD, Disney and Pixar have shared storyboards of an alternative ending. The ending would have seen Mei encounter 4*TOWN's Robaire (Jordan Fisher) on a plane set for California when the singer sits next to her. Despite Mei trying to contain her fan freak-out, Robaire recognizes her as the "Panda Girl," admitting that he's a fan, leading to Mei transforming one more time. Check out the storyboards below.
The alternative ending follows a recently revealed cut opening scene featuring Mei and her mother, Ming (Sandra Oh). The film's opening scene is expanded upon in the deleted scene, as fans are given a glimpse of Mei and her family taking the childhood New Years' photograph at a store. Ming can be seen setting up her backdrop in the store alongside Mei before taking their perfect shot. Director Domee Shi explained that the scene not only would have introduced Ming but would have informed audiences of the dynamic between her and Mei that would serve as the emotional core of the film.
While they only shared scenes with Mei a handful of times, Pixar's real-world inspired early 2000's boyband 4*TOWN are vital parts of Turning Red's narrative, as Mei and her friends form a strong friendship over their shared love for their idols. As such, having Mei have a surprise encounter with Robaire is another perfect way of capturing the early 2000's boyband fandom that is a central part of the film's narrative. While the film's original ending shows Mei finally finding a perfect balance in her life, the alternative end shows that she still has more to learn while also giving audiences one more humorous red panda moment that they can see for themselves when Turning Red is released on physical media on May 3rd, 2022.
Source: Pixar, The Walt Disney Company