Soul (Pixar)
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50 free Soul (Pixar) trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
Soul is the Pixar film that went straight to Disney+ on Christmas Day 2020 and still won two Oscars. Pete Docter spent four years on it, Kemp Powers became the studio's first Black co-director, and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross wrote, by Reznor's count, six films' worth of music for the Great Before. These 50 questions cover the story of Joe Gardner and 22, the voice cast from Jamie Foxx and Tina Fey to Graham Norton and Questlove, the design choices behind the Jerrys and the You Seminar, Jon Batiste's jazz, the pandemic release that sent it to streaming, and the shorts that followed, Burrow and 22 vs. Earth. Every answer is sourced from the film's Wikipedia coverage, so you can check anything that surprises you. Play through in sets of 10 and find out whether you really know your spark from your purpose.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Who directed Pixar's Soul?
Pete Docter
Docter had previously directed Monsters, Inc., Up and Inside Out, and became Pixar's chief creative officer in 2018.
Q 02Who voices Joe Gardner in Soul?
Jamie Foxx
Docter noted Foxx is himself a classically trained pianist, which made him a natural fit for a jazz musician.
Q 03Who voices the cynical soul 22 in Soul?
Tina Fey
Fey also helped write her character's lines, contributing to the screenplay.
Q 04What instrument does Joe Gardner play in Soul?
Piano
Animators captured MIDI data from Jon Batiste's sessions so every on-screen key press matched the note played.
Q 05How does Joe Gardner end up separated from his body in Soul?
He falls down an open manhole
His excitement after landing the gig with Dorothea Williams distracts him on the walk home.
Q 06What is the name of the realm where new souls are prepared for Earth in Soul?
The Great Before
It is also called the You Seminar; the Great Beyond is where Joe is headed before he escapes.
Q 07In Soul, the otherworldly soul counselors all share which name?
Jerry
Terry, by contrast, is the lone obsessive soul counter who notices the count is off.
Q 08Which animal's body does Joe's soul occupy when he returns to Earth?
A therapy cat
Co-writer Mike Jones came up with the cat idea so Joe could view his own life from outside.
Q 09What is the name of the soul counter who tracks Joe down in Soul?
Terry
Terry, voiced by Rachel House, even appears after the credits to tell viewers the film is over and to go home.
Q 10Who voices Moonwind, the sign-twirling mystic in Soul?
Graham Norton
Moonwind regularly enters the Zone to rescue lost souls and helps find Joe's body in a hospital.
Q 11Which jazz saxophonist's quartet does Joe audition for in Soul?
Dorothea Williams
Angela Bassett voices the bandleader, who hires Joe for that night's show.
Q 12Which musician voices the drummer Curley in Soul?
Questlove
Curley is a former student of Joe's; Questlove also consulted on the film's jazz authenticity.
Q 13Who voices Joe's mother Libba in Soul?
Phylicia Rashad
Libba works as a seamstress and pushes Joe to take the full-time teaching job.
Q 14Who composed the ambient score for Soul's metaphysical scenes?
Q 21How many Academy Awards did Soul win?
Two
It took Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score, and was also nominated for Best Sound.
Q 22Soul was the first Pixar film to feature what?
A Black lead character
Pixar formed an internal Cultural Trust of Black employees and hired consultants to get the details right.
Q 23Who became Pixar's first African-American co-director through his work on Soul?
Kemp Powers
Powers' initial contract was just 12 weeks; he later co-directed Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
Soul's co-director wrote which play that became an Oscar-nominated 2020 film?
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
The Nine Inch Nails duo were recommended by sound designer Ren Klyce, a regular on David Fincher films.
Q 15Who wrote the original jazz music for Soul's New York scenes?
Jon Batiste
Batiste aimed for a user-friendly jazz that felt authentic but could still reach a general audience.
Q 16On which streaming service was Soul released on December 25, 2020?
Disney+
Unlike Mulan, it skipped Premier Access and was free to every subscriber.
Q 17Why was Soul's theatrical release cancelled in 2020?
The COVID-19 pandemic
It had been slated for June 19, then November 20, before Disney sent it to streaming on Christmas Day.
Q 18Which short film accompanied Soul on its streaming release?
Burrow
Madeline Sharafian's SparkShorts tale of a house-hunting rabbit was nominated for an Oscar.
Q 19At which festival did Soul hold its premiere?
BFI London
It premiered on October 11, 2020, and was also part of the Cannes and Rome festival lineups that year.
Q 20Soul was finally released in US theaters in which year?
2024
It arrived on January 12, 2024, alongside re-releases of Turning Red and Luca.
One Night in Miami
Regina King directed the adaptation, and Powers earned a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination the same year Soul won.
Q 25In which month and year was Soul first conceived by its director?
January 2016
He pitched the idea to John Lasseter right after the 88th Academy Awards nominations were announced.
Q 26What profession did early drafts of Soul give Joe before he became a musician?
Scientist
Docter felt a scientist did not feel naturally pure, and a musician offered a more appealing profession.
Q 27Which cinematographer consulted on lighting for Soul's Black characters?
Bradford Young
Young's credits include Arrival and Selma; animators used lighting to emphasise the characters' features.
Q 28Critics saw the Jerrys and Terry as a nod to which 1971 Italian animated series?
La Linea
Their look began as line drawings by story artist Aphton Corbin Alcordo and wire sculptures by Deanna Marsigliese.
Q 29The architecture of the You Seminar realm was inspired by what?
1930s-1960s world's fairs
The filmmakers wanted a place not tied to any one culture, with a sense of awe and importance.
Q 30Effects supervisor Bill Watral compared the astral-plane sequence to which film moment?
The shower scene in Psycho
Like Hitchcock's scene, it took months to create despite lasting only moments on screen.