Ernesto de la Cruz

Ernesto de la Cruz is the main antagonist from the Disney/Pixar film Coco. He was a famous singer and musician who dazzled audiences with his good looks and his charm, and was a source of Mexican pride due to his strong morals and his standing up for his fellow Mexicans. After his death, he resides as a soul in the Land of the Dead. Miguel's quest in the movie is to find Ernesto, whom he believes is his great-great-grandfather, in the Land of the Dead.

Background
Born in 1896, Ernesto was an up-and-coming musician from the town of Santa Cecilia. He started his musical career as a guitarist with his close friend Héctor as his song writer. As the two were on tour across Mexico however, Héctor felt remorse about leaving his wife and daughter and intended to quit the career to go back to them. Ernesto tried to convince him to change his mind, and when his attempts failed, Ernesto seemingly accepted Héctor's decision and shared a toast with him. Unbeknownst, to Héctor, however, Ernesto had poisoned the drink; as the two walked down the street, Héctor succumbed to the poison and died. Seizing the opportunity, Ernesto took his song book and guitar. With Héctor's songs, Ernesto became a musical legend across the country and a star of renowned films. Winning crowds with his noble appearance, Ernesto was revered as a symbol of Mexico's passion and pride.

In 1942, Ernesto performed the song Remember Me at a concert among millions of his fans. As he finished the song on a high note, the backstage hand was distracted and accidentally released the rope holding the stage's bell up; Ernesto, being right under the bell at the moment, was crushed by it and killed instantly. His body was laid to rest in a tomb back in Santa Cecilia, while his spirit was sent to the Land of the Dead. Ernesto's memory carried on in the public, thus he has retained his reputation in the Land of the Dead, regularly performing to the dead citizens and living out his days in his massive underworld mansion.

Official Desription

 * Ernesto de la Cruz is Miguel's idol and the most famous musician in the history of Mexico. Revered by fans worldwide until his untimely death, the charming and charismatic musician is even more beloved in the Land of the Dead.

Personality
At first glance, Ernesto presents himself as a charming, wise, and sensible individual who encouraged others to follow their dreams no matter what, making him seem like a good role model.

However, it is later revealed that Ernesto was selfish and desperate in life, where his ambition drove him to murder his best friend Héctor, and stole his song book and guitar to achieve fame and glory. His afterlife as a spirit has not only maintained but strengthened his reputation that he will go to malicious lengths to keep it that way. Even Miguel, the boy who looked up to him as his idol, was a liability in his eyes to the extent that Ernesto would resort to murdering the child to hide his secret.

Trivia

 * Ernesto is designed after famous Mexican actors and singers from the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema, in particular Jorge Negrete.
 * The crossout of Ernesto's tomb at the end of the film was replaced by the "X" letter in the international versions.
 * With the exception of "Remember Me" (which was sung by his original voice actor), Ernesto's singing voice is provided by a different actor, Antonio Sol.
 * There are hints that Ernesto isn't Miguel's great-great-grandfather.
 * Ernesto is genuinely shocked upon realize he has a great great-grandson. While this, at first, can be seen as Ernesto not caring to see his family, it can also mean Ernesto is never married or had an illegitimate child, which if the latter is true, it would shatter his reputation due to Mexicans have very strict thoughts about child born out of wedlock.
 * When Ernesto gives a blessing to Miguel, his flower petal didn't shine, indicating Ernesto isn't a member of Miguel's family.