Lin-Manuel Miranda Thought Every Encanto Song Would Outperform Bruno

Lin-Manuel Miranda explains why he expected Encanto‘s hit song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” to be the least commercially successful. The latest film from Disney Animation Studios hit theaters in November and Disney+ on December 24, with the latter propelling it from a box-office disappointment to a veritable phenomenon. Encanto has now cemented its place as one of the most popular Disney movies in years, generating a level of fan interaction perhaps not seen since 2013’s Frozen.

With financial takings out of the picture, the clearest way to measure the film’s success has been the soundtrack’s commercial dominance. The album climbed all the way to the top of the Billboard 200, while every Encanto song hit the US singles chart, becoming the first Disney movie to send more than one into the top-10. The clear standout, however, has been “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” which became the animation studio’s first original song to hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 since Aladdin‘s “A Whole New World” in 1992 – it currently sits at #2 after 10 weeks in the rankings.

But, according to Encanto songwriter Miranda, that was his least expected outcome. In an interview with the LA Times, he reveals that his wildest dream for the soundtrack prior to its release would have flipped the top and bottom performers, replacing “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” with “Colombia, Mi Encanto.” While that track spent only one week at #100 before sliding off the charts, Miranda says its party-song simplicity made him think it might have a chance at commercial success, but he never considered that the runaway hit would be the one that’s “incredibly plot-heavy.” Check out Miranda’s full quote below:

In my wildest dreams of what might happen, I would have swapped ‘Colombia, Mi Encanto’ — the top and bottom of that chart! ‘Colombia, Mi Encanto’ is such a party tune: ‘This could maybe have a little life beyond the movie.’ And the fact that the ensemble song that is incredibly plot-heavy and almost requires having seen the film to fully understand is the one at the top of the charts is one of the most delightful and hilarious surprises… of my life! [Laughs] The one that requires no context just made it and the one that requires all the context is the banger.

When framed this way, it’s certainly understandable that Miranda expected “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” to be the least-likely candidate for mainstream success. The ensemble song sees a collection of Madrigal family members and Encanto townspeople explain to protagonist Mirabel why they no longer bring up her missing uncle, Bruno, whose magical gift was foresight. This introduction-by-reputation is important for the film, providing a key contrast for when Bruno, who chose self-exile after internalizing his family’s criticism, actually appears.

It seems Disney’s marketing team shared Miranda’s assumptions, as the Encanto trailers used “Colombia, Mi Encanto” to promote the film, but “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”‘s popularity on TikTok proved it as the most resonant with fans. It is far from the only song to receive love from the public – “Surface Pressure” has also charted remarkably well, while the Spanish-language “Dos Oruguitas” could take home the Oscar for Best Original Song later this month. That the most plot-dependent song became Encanto‘s most popular is only an indication of how much love audiences have for the movie itself, and Miranda’s desire to make Encanto 2 should have fans eager for new music based around the Madrigal family.

Source: LA Times

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