Ernesto de la Cruz

Ernesto de la Cruz is the main antagonist of Disney/Pixar's 19th animated feature film Coco. He is Miguel Rivera's idol. After dying of being crushed by a giant bell, he resides as a soul in the Land of the Dead.

He is voiced by Benjamin Bratt.

Role
Miguel dreams of becoming a musician like his idol Ernesto de la Cruz, a popular singer-songwriter and film star who died when he was crushed by a bell in a live concert. However, because Miguel's great-great-grandfather left his family to achieve his musical dreams, his family has banned music for generations. Because of the ban, the only relative Miguel likes is his great-grandmother Coco. On Día de Muertos, after Miguel inadvertently damages Mama Imelda's ofrenda with Miguel's great-great grandfather's face ripped out, he finds a bent section of the photo revealing that his great-great grandfather used a guitar similar to De la Cruz. This causes Miguel to believe that he and his family are direct descendants of De la Cruz.

At the palace, Miguel befriends Ernesto and convinces him that he is his great-great grandson, with both bonding as they spend time together. However, before Ernesto can give him his blessing, Hector sneaks into the palace, dressed as Frida Kahlo to interrupt them. When Hector meets with Ernesto again, it is revealed that Hector used to be De la Cruz's partner in the music business, with Hector being a well-known songwriter and composer. After Miguel points out the similarities between Hector and De la Cruz's argument and one in one of De la Cruz's films where the villain poisons his counterpart him, Hector remembers the day of his death. That day, when Hector had decided to abandon the music industry and stay with his family, De la Cruz poisoned him and stole his songs and ideas, thereby achieving fame. His true colors revealed, De la Cruz takes away Hector's portrait, and detains Hector and Miguel in a Cenote.

In the pit, Miguel realizes his family's intentions and wishes to reconcile with them, with Hector revealing that his main motivation for wanting to cross the bridge was to see his daughter Coco again, making him Miguel's true great-great grandfather. However, because of Coco's fading memory and her being the only person alive to remember Hector, Hector begins to fade away, giving them until sunrise to save him. When Imelda finds Miguel and reunites with Hector, Miguel convinces her and his family to help him recover Hector's portrait from De la Cruz and is surprised when he discovers that it was thanks to Dante that they found Hector, causing the dog to reveal himself as an alebrije. The plan fails when Hector's portrait is destroyed, but Ernesto is exposed to his fans as a fraud by the deceased Rivera family. He is later destroyed by having a bell fall on top of him, echoing his first death.