By the D23 Team
Disney’s Jungle Cruise, inspired by the classic Disney theme park attraction, is a rollicking thrill ride down the mighty and mysterious Amazon, set to make waves when it arrives in theaters and on Disney+ Premier Access on Friday, July 30. Featuring a star-studded cast led by Dwayne Johnson as the wisecracking skipper Frank Wolff and Emily Blunt as determined botanist Dr. Lily Houghton, Jungle Cruise is a pulse-quickening adventure in which Lily enlists Frank’s guide service and his ramshackle boat, La Quila, to convey her through the deepest and most dangerous parts of the Amazon River to try to uncover the mystery of an ancient tree—one with the power to change the fate of humanity. Here is a guide to the dazzling array of colorful characters you will meet beginning this Friday when Jungle Cruise debuts.
Frank Wolff/Dwayne Johnson
Charismatic skipper Frank Wolff is head of the Jungle Navigation Company. Opportunistic and endlessly charming, Frank leads unwitting tourists on sightseeing cruises along the Amazon that are low on substance but high on humor. As a producer, the potential for a Jungle Cruise–influenced feature film project was tantalizing enough, but to take on the mantle of Frank, the down-on-his-luck skipper of the jungle cruise riverboat, was chock-full of possibilities for Johnson. Describing his character, Johnson says, “Frank is a skipper on the Amazon, and he takes a lot of pride in what he does. There are elements as the movie progresses where you start to realize things about Frank that one would never have guessed. The man is an old soul who has a very unique perspective on life itself. Frank meets Lily, who is ambitious and brave and funny and charming and beautiful, and all these things eventually remind him how great life can be.”
Dr. Lily Houghton/Emily Blunt
Dr. Lily Houghton is a determined British scientist and explorer who is as brilliant as she is fearless. Driven not only by her ideals but by an unrelenting desire to prove herself, free-spirited Lily is a force to be reckoned with. “I was just so struck by Lily’s determination and tenacity, and the fact that she was so ahead of her time, considering that the film is set in 1917,” says Blunt. “There was so much inequality between men and women and what was expected of her at the time. But she doesn’t subscribe to what was appropriate for her sex. And I found her really funny. She’s very reckless and heedless and adventurous. I admired her spirit.”
Captain Aguirre/Edgar Ramírez
Captain Aguirre is the fearsome leader of a cutthroat crew of soldiers. These cursed men are powerful fighters who carry a personal vendetta that makes them even more of a threat to Frank and Lily on their quest. “I also love the mystery of my character, Aguirre, and the duality of the character,” Ramirez says. “To play a character like Aguirre, who walks that very thin line between good and evil, is very interesting.”
MacGregor Houghton/Jack Whitehall
Lily’s brother, MacGregor, joins her and Frank on their expedition down the Amazon. Dapper MacGregor enjoys the finer things in life—stylish fashion, fine dining and elegant living—even in the middle of the rain forest. British comedian/actor Jack Whitehall is perfectly cast as a well-meaning sibling, whose often inept attempts to take care of his sister give the film some of its most hilarious moments. Although he and Blunt had never met, they soon discovered some unexpected overlaps in their backgrounds growing up in the same part of London. The pair easily fell into a familial rapport. “Our backstories are very similar,” notes Whitehall, “so Emily and I playing sister and brother just seems so right. I think we’ve been able to transfer all of those weird connections we have on to the screen in the best possible way.”
Nilo/Paul Giamatti
Owner of a wildly successful sightseeing cruise company, Nilo is a powerful figure—and a tough competitor—in the Amazonian port town where Frank ekes out a living with his ramshackle boat. Veteran actor Paul Giamatti portrays Nilo, who has a long history with Frank Wolff, Johnson’s character. “Nilo keeps Frank under his thumb,” says Giamatti. “He extorts money out of him, and he wants all the boats in the town. He even wants Frank’s beat-up boat. Nilo just wants to control everything. So he’s bullying Frank to get what he wants.” Frank’s boat, La Quila, is the exact opposite of Nilo’s slick, state-of-the-art tourist boats that are moored in the same harbor. “La Quila is a wonderful sort of character in and of itself,” comments Giamatti. “It’s just a fantastic, beat-up old trooper of a boat, which Frank is like too, in many ways. Frank’s been around a long time, and the boat’s been around a long time.”
Prince Joachim/Jesse Plemons
Prince Joachim is a wealthy and capable young commander with an arsenal of military-grade weapons at his disposal. In his quest for power and glory, he ruthlessly seeks the secret at the heart of Lily and Frank’s journey. “We tried to create a villain character that feels unique,” Plemons says. “It was just about finding his quirks. He’s someone who is forward-thinking and looking far ahead into the future. So, I tried to keep that in mind when I was working on the character.”
