She won the hearts of millions.
We couldnt figure out Dory for the longest time, saysNemoandDorydirector and co-writer Andrew Stanton.
Giving a main character short-term memory loss is the worst idea you could ever do.
Credit: Pixar
They cant say and express how theyve changed, and how theyre growing, because they dont even remember.
And so you have no way to track it.
She was a godsend, he says.
Pixar
A dream come true for a writer.
Once I had Ellens voice in my head, it was a breeze to write for.
Ellen rescued Dory, and a strong argument could be made the for the inverse.
The stand-up comediennes attempts at a film career had fizzled (you rememberMr.
), and her romantic relationship with Anne Heche had become tabloid fodder.
Youve got to remember, we live in San Francisco.)
It wasnt that it brought my career back, but I wasnt working at the time, she says.
I could use her like Batmans utility belt or a Swiss army knife, says Stanton.
I could make her come up with anything I needed in any scene.
If I wanted her to suddenly be an authority on a submarine, I could.
If I wanted her to suddenly know French, I could.
There was no contesting what she knew.
Elevating Dory to leading status, on the other hand, presented an incredible challenge for Stanton.
How do you chart the emotional growth of someone who doesnt even remember it?
we do it as sort of a passing gag, admits Stanton.
Not everyone else did.
I remember getting mad at one point and saying, Shes spent her whole youth wandering the ocean alone.
Shes a tragic character.
She shouldnt just be funny all the time, guys!
And they kind of said, We dont see her that way.
And I realized, I have to actually dramatize that.
I have to put that in the movie so everybody sees her the way Ive always seen her.
Dory resonated with the world in a way that many of our characters havent.
She represents something people really aspire to or connect to or take strength from.
So we knew [fixing her] wasnt right.
Because thats too much of who she is.
Some things, you just dont forget.
