Twenty years ago, a small clownfish named Nemo swam into the hearts of moviegoers.
Alexander Gould voiced the titular character in Pixar’s Finding Nemo, which was released 20 years ago May 30, way back in 2003, when the actor was just 9 years old. However, he was 6 when he started working on the animated blockbuster, he explained to Good Morning America.
The film — directed by Andrew Stanton, and starring Albert Brooks as Nemo’s overprotective dad, Marlin, and Ellen DeGeneres as a regal blue tang with a memory problem — also made history. It holds the distinction of being the first Pixar film to win the coveted best animated feature Oscar, doing so at the 2004 Academy Awards.
If you ask Gould why the film has stood the test of time, he has a theory.
“It just has so many beautiful themes,” he told GMA. “I think that’s probably why it was such a cultural phenomenon at the time. It just spoke so deeply to everybody who watched it.”
“You pick up all the good messages of having faith in yourself, trusting yourself, being able to overcome obstacles in your own life. Things that might seemingly hold you back don’t actually hold you back,” he added. “For parents, it has great themes around letting go and pushing your kids into the world and letting them thrive by their own merit.”
Having been in the movie has another big bonus, the Weeds veteran explains: “I have a bunch of nieces and nephews, and I just got to rewatch it with all of them, and they had a blast. They’re quoting the movie to me and asking me questions about filming it while they’re watching, which is very fun.”
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