Voice of no-nonsense Abuelita in ‘Coco’ dies
FILE - Renee Victor appears at the premiere of "Coco" in Los Angeles on Nov. 8, 2017. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
Renee Victor, who voiced the no-nonsense, sandal-throwing Abuelita in Disney’s animated hit “Coco” and played the wisecracking Lupita on Showtime’s “Weeds,” has died. She was 86.
Victor’s death was confirmed on Monday by a representative, Julie Smith, who said the actor had lymphoma for several years. She died Friday at her home in Sherman Oaks, California, Smith said, with family by her side.
A post on the Instagram feed of Pixar, which produced “Coco,” said: “We are heartbroken to hear of the passing of Renee Victor, the voice (of) Abuelita in ‘Coco’ and an incredible part of the Pixar family. We will always remember you.”
Victor appeared in 22 episodes of “Weeds” as sassy housekeeper Lupita between 2005 and 2012, among many other TV credits including “ER,” “Matlock” and “The Addams Family.” But she was perhaps best known for what she called the chancla-throwing grandmother in “Coco,” the 2017 family-friendly movie that explored death through the journey of a young Mexican boy to the land of the dead.
Born in San Antonio, Texas, on July 25, 1938, Victor began her performing career as a singer and dancer.
Her film credits, other than “The Apostle,” included the 2014 horror film “Paranormal Activity 5: The Marked Ones,” “The Doctor” with William Hurt (1991), and “A Night in Old Mexico” (2013), also with Duvall. In 2004, she had a recurring role as Florina Lopez on TV’s “ER,” and the following year was cast in “Weeds.”