“My gift wasn’t helping the family…but uh…but I love my family, you know?”
―Bruno Madrigal
Encanto has already surpassed every expectation and it just keeps better. We Don’t Talk About Bruno will be on repeat until the end of 2022…and maybe after. Speaking of Bruno, there is much to talk about. What if, speaking theoretically, there were to be a prequel to Encanto that surrounds Bruno’s early life, what led him to leave his family, and what went on during his ten years of isolation?
Encanto is about the Madrigal family from Colombia, where each member is blessed with a unique gift thanks to their magical house and a candle that somehow always stays lit. Well, each family member has a magical gift except for Mirabel. Despite her absence of magical powers, Mirabel, with the help of Bruno, saves her family when she realized the house and the magic inside are losing its power.
As a refresher, Bruno’s power is to see the future, and both his family and people in the village would steer clear of him in fear that he will bring them negative actions. He became the black sheep of the family and even his mother, Alma Madrigal, didn’t want to be around him. He was an outcast. His extreme loneliness caused him to commit an act that is dark, isolated, and, well, kind of disgusting; his decision to live in the walls of his home. That decision wasn’t made out of anger or spite, though; it was made so that he could protect his family from any of his negative visions. The prequel would include all of this that was left out of the original film. The prequel would also include Bruno getting his powers, growing up, seeing how his prophecies created destruction and how that made the people misunderstand him. So what happened in that 10 years of separation? How did he avoid getting caught by his family members? Did he and the magical home of Casa Madrigal ever work together in helping the family?
Bruno’s character is very eclectic and there is actually a large amount of depth to him. At his core, he is kindhearted and deeply caring. All of his superstitious actions like throwing salt over his shoulder, avoiding cracks in the woods while singing a healing song, and holding his breath while crossing his fingers are geared towards deterring bad luck from his family. Not to mention he is hilarious. It would be interesting to see in the prequel how Bruno actually lived inside the walls of his home, and when did his affinity for rats begin? Maybe some of his rat friends will have greater importance in his movie.
