Abby Turning Red is one such character who might not be as intelligent and extraordinary as the usual side characters but wins everyone’s heart in a blow.
Have you not watched the famous 2022 Pixar movie Turning Red? If the answer is yes, you are now well acquainted with cute little Abby in Mei’s friends’ group.
However, if you are yet to watch Turning Red but want to know about Abby Turning Red, nothing can be a better place to start than this.
Made in 2022, Pixar Animation Studios is the producer of Domee Shi-directed film Turning Red which Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures then distributed.
So, this is the first Pixar feature film with a female director completely in charge of direction. Domee Shi previously directed the short film named Bao. However, Turning Red is her directorial debut in a feature film.
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Abby Turning Red
Do you mind knowing about the plot in brief? So, for those who haven’t yet watched Abby’s Turning Red, here is a little plot overview.
Turning Red Plot Summary
Mei’s family
Jin and Ming are the parents of a thirteen-year-old kid named Meilin or “Mei” Lee, who lived in Toronto in 2002.
The child works to make her parents proud and devotes her time to taking good care of their family’s temple dedicated to Sun Yee, their ancestor.
She is not very close to Ming and doesn’t discuss her personal life with her mother. For example, Mei and her group of friends comprising Abby Park, Priya Mangal, and Miriam Mendelsohn, are fans of 4 Town, a boy band.
However, this is because her mother is overprotective of Mei. So much so that she doesn’t spare Mei a public humiliation when she knows about her crush on a clerk from the local convenience store named Devon.
Mei’s red panda moment
On that very night, Mei wakes up having a nightmare where she sees red pandas. On the following morning, she discovers her transformation into a red panda.
At this juncture, you might link it to Gregor Samsa’s transformation in Kafka’s Metamorphosis. But, thankfully, Domee Shi does not take that existential dread turn. Mei discovers that the transformation only happens when she experiences an emotional upsurge.
In this film featuring Abby Turning Red, we get to know this transformation was an act of protection for their two children and other female members of the family.
However, as this has become unsustainable in modern times, thus one needs to lock up the red panda spirit in a talisman. A ritual on a Red Mon night will help facilitate this.
Mei’s friends get to know about this transformation but still remain good friends. Keep up your interest in Abby Turning Red; we will give her special attention soon.
Even though Ming permits Mei to live life normally, she cannot go to the boy band’s concert. However, she and her friends secretly raise money. For the last bid, she decided to attend the birthday party of school bully Tyler.
At that party, she knows the concert is scheduled on a ritual night, not the day after. In a rage, she also attacks Tyler when the latter makes slurry comments about her family. Ming accuses her friends of this bad conduct, and Mei fails to take a stand for them.
Accepting who she is
Jin tells Mei to embrace the spirit of Red Panda, and on a ritual night, Mei decides to keep her power. So, she leaves the ritual and attends the concert.
However, Mei transforms into a red panda and forcefully tries to take Mei. In the battle that ensues, Mei accidentally hurts Ming. However, in the end, she decides to keep her red panda spirit intact, which King also submits happily.
Finally, they collectively accumulated the money required to repair Skydome, where the concert occurred.
Also, the relationship between Ming and Mei starts improving. Mei is now happy with her temple duties, her red panda form, and her friends, where Tyler is also included.
So, in the plot overview, little is known about Abby Turning Red. However, now that you have a general idea about how the film starts and proceeds, you will understand Abby Turning Red better.
The personality of Abby Park
As we see in the film, Abby Turning Red is a fun-loving, charming character who loves her friends. However, if asked, she can also show her aggressive nature. When Mei requested a punch, she didn’t hesitate to blow her one.
Moreover, she erupted all her anger on herself and committed a mistake.
But, sometimes, some mishaps happen to owe to her weak memory. Even though she loves helping Mei, she sometimes ends up ruining something.
Abby Turning Red loves to hug the red panda version of Mei as she finds her fluffy body very cozy. She can even give up her concert ticket for her friends, as she did when Mei said she wouldn’t be able to make it to the show.
Physical description
A sweet Korean-Canadian kid of short stature Abby Park is a charming presence with her brown eyes, bright purple eyeshadow, long black hair, and fair skin.
Her favorite color is purple, so the color of her headband is also glittery purple. The turtleneck sweater also has a purple hue. Her golden-hearted earrings and auburn shoes give her a cool look.
She also wears a rainbow friendship band on her left wrist and a lavender watch on the right.
On-screen presence
Abby Turning Red has a sustained on-screen presence in Turning Red movie. Thus, it proves that Abby from Turning Red has strong character importance.
In the first scene, she shouts at a bunch of kids because they couldn’t correctly throw a piece of waste. It is here when Abby Turning Red meets Mei.
After that, Mei and friends and Abby Park Turning Red again come together when going to school. They also stop Mei, who peeps over to catch a glimpse of Devon, the clerk from the store. Abby talks about a haircut that her mom had given Devon. She also calls him a hot hobo.
Abby Park Turning Red also is a fan of the 4* Town band, and she, along with others, gets engrossed in the magazine.
Abby, along with Priya and Miriam, couldn’t agree less that Mei’s parents control Mei as the latter turned out their request of joining in “Nobody Like You” singing.
It is also Turning Red Abby, along with her friends, who first notice the change in Mei’s behavior. She also told Mei that Tyler has said that she is a pervert.
Tyler was also putting Mei’s drawings with Devon’s around the school. Here Abby Turning Red intervenes along with her other friends.
Mei accidentally exposes her panda form when she gets emotionally excited while disclosing that 4 Town is coming to Toronto.
Abby and other friends get to see that. Abby Turning Red says May 18 is the day when 4 Town will hit their town. They decide to keep Mei’s panda form a secret. Abby and others leave the house as soon as they hear Ming around.
Abby convinces an angry Mei that they will make it to 4 Town’s concert. She also protects Mei’s panda form from other girls. Mei and her friends start working on “Operation 4 Town shakedown” to collect money for the tickets.
They also go to Tyler’s party, where Mei arrives in a cheap outfit of the red panda. Abby also chills out with mei, Priya, and Miriam. However, at the party, they heard that band is coming on May 25. Mei bursts into anger, transform into a panda, and attack Tyler.
Abby, Priya, and Miriam visit the concert without Mei, and Mei shows up accidentally. They also spot Tyler there. As the turn of events described in the plot, Ming comes and destroys the concert. Finally, they come to terms and collect money to repair the concert hall.
So, Abby Turing Red has an endearing presence throughout the entire film. If you haven’t yet watched Turning Red, this is one of the reasons why you should watch it.
Other casts
Now that we have known about the plot and Abby Turning Red, let’s know a little about the cast of Turning Red Abby.
Mei
Rosalie Chiyang plays the role of Mei manganato.
Ming
Sandra Oh gives the voice of Ming. As we have seen in the plot overview, even if she wants the best for Mei, she ends up being overprotective toward her. She has an image of Mei that the latter finds difficult to fulfill, leading to clashes between mother and daughter. Also, the moment the red panda spirit of Mei comes to life, Ming gets all the more strict.
Sandra Oh is known for many other films and series like Killing Eve, Grey’s Anatomy, and the recent Netflix series the chair. Jin is Mei’s father, and Orion Lee plays the character. He featured in films like First Cow. He is the Stars Lab Scientist in Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
Jin
He is a very supportive father who talks Mei through the transition. It is due to Jin that Mei decides to keep her red panda powers alive. Because of him, she flees the ritual and goes to the concert. Thus, she finds herself due to her father and her willingness.
Priya
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan plays Priya, Mei’s friend. You will know this face if you have watched Never Have I Ever. The series is based on the childhood memories of Mindy Kaling an Indian-American girl.
Miriam
Mei has a bunch of friends in her group, and Miriam is one of them who is a tomboyish character. However, Ming thinks Miriam is not right for Mei and thinks of her as a bad influence. Ava Morse plays Miriam’s character. She has also voiced in Disney’s Ron’s Gone Wrong.
Abby
This is what we all waited for. Who played the role of our favorite Abby Turning Red? Well, the answer is Hyein Park.
Abby completes their rowdy and sweet friend group Mei. She possesses chaotic energy. Her short and bubbly stature and wrapped in purplish hue make her a charming presence on-screen. She is a Korean-Canadian in the film Turning Red.
Interestingly, like JIn, she also shares her surname with the actor who played Abby Turning Red. Hyein Parks is a storyboard artist at Pixar. She made her debut in voice acting as Abby in Turning Red
4 Town
This is the boy band that Mei and her group of friends love. Also, as the movie progresses, we see that Tyler, the school bully, is their fan. This is the stuff over which Tyler and Mei bond and start their friendship.
Abby Turning Red is also a very big fan of 4 Town. However, she mistook their date of arrival in Toronto.
Later it was found out that it was on the ritual day of Mei that they had their show. Afterward, their concert was also destroyed by Ming.
Finneas O’ Connel and Billie Eilish had written the songs of this band. Topher Ngo, Grayson Villanueva, Josh Levi, Jordan Fisher, and Finneas give the voice to the band members.
Why watch Turning Red on Disney?
So, Abby Turning Red and her group of friends, especially Mei will turn your head if you give it a watch. It is a story of finding oneself, it is a story of sisterhood and camaraderie. It’s also a lesson for good parenting. So, if you want to immerse yourself in it, sign in to your Disney+ account and watch it!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Who is Abby on Turning Red?
Abby is a friend of Meilin Lee, the protagonist of Turning Red. Abby’s character is represented as a Korean-Canadian.
2. Who is the voice of Abby from Turning Red?
Hyein Park, a storyboard artist, is the voice behind Abby. It was her debut as a voice actor in Pixar.
3. Who is the purple girl in Turning Red?
Abby’s character uses the color purple to represent the pessimistic attitude the character carries. Abby is bold but also chaotic.
