With a very special thank you to Angel Brave, let’s review the Elio production babies list!
WHAT ARE PRODUCTION BABIES?
Ever since the very first Pixar movie, Toy Story, debuted in 1995, the studio has followed a fascinating tradition. Disney adopted the tradition, as did plenty of other animation studios over time.
They’ve listed the names of any babies born to the staff responsible for the movie in that film’s credits.
Those names appear at the very end, under the heading Production Babies. Because, well, these babies arrived during the movie’s creation.
That’s 29 lists from Pixar alone, if you’re counting.
Pixar Animation Studios officially became part of Walt Disney Studios in 2006. Disney now follows the same custom, as do several other animation shops.
Obviously, Snow White didn’t have a list of Production Babies.
So it’s a new(ish) phenomenon, but still widespread.
Pixar alone has 29 lists of Production Babies under its belt – and counting. 2025‘s Elio was the studio’s 29th feature film, meaning over 1,000 births have been celebrated this way.
Despite sharing the names, the end credits aren’t exactly birth announcements. They don’t share gender, date – or even year – of birth, or the parent’s role on the film. A handful of lists might note twins. Occasionally, if two Production Babies share a first name, the initial of their surname (presumably) is also included.
But that really doesn’t take away from the sheer delight of getting a peek at the creative teams behind our favorite films choose for their new arrivals.
ABOUT THE MOVIE ELIO
Released in June of 2025, Elio is an original story about a young boy, raised by his aunt after his parents pass away in a car accident. His aunt is an Air Force officer who once dreamed of being an astronaut. Elio, too, is obsessed with outer space. He longs to meet aliens.
Elio Solis’ name is fascinating. His first name comes from the Greek sun god, Helios. And his surname? Sol is the Latin – and Spanish – word for sun, too. In Roman mythology, Sol is the personification of the sun, sometimes identified with Helios.
Warning: Mild Spoilers Ahead
Elio is visiting his aunt on base, where he learns that there just might be communication from aliens – and a chance to answer back. Chaos ensues, but Elio does manage to respond to the outer space messages.
And then he gets his wish. Elio is taken by aliens to their headquarters in the Communiverse, where he’s mistaken for the ambassador from Earth.
Elio befriends a young alien named Glordon, faces off against Glordon’s very scary dad, Grigon, and ultimately saves the day. But he chooses to go home to his aunt Olga and life on Earth – at least for now.
So it’s a happy ending, complete with a voiceover from the late, great Carl Sagan.
FUTURE EARTH AMBASSADORS: ELIO PRODUCTION BABIES
Rather than “Elio production babies,” the credits call them “Future Earth Ambassadors,” inspired by the main character’s adventure.
- AADHINI
- ANDREW
- ARCHIE
- BENJAMIN
- DIEGO
- ELIJAH
- ERO
- EVELYN B.
- EVELYN S.
- EZEKIEL
- FRANKIE
- GRAYSON
- JAMES
- HONG-YE
- KORA
- LAINEY
- LEO
- LONI
- LUCIA
- MARION
- MIRA
- MONA
- NAHLA
- NORA
- OTTO
- PETER
- ROY
- SAMMY
- TESS
- TOM
- VICTORIA
- WYATT
- ZOE R.
- ZOE Z.
ABOUT THE ELIO PRODUCTION BABIES
CLASSIC AND TRADITIONAL NAMES
Just like any list of names circa 2025, plenty of the choices count as time-tested favorites. On the boys’ side, that includes Andrew, Benjamin, James, and Peter. Nicknames Tom and Sammy fit here, too.
For girls, Nora and Victoria, as well as nickname Tess represent this style.
CURRENT and TRENDING
Along with traditional picks, many of the Elio production babies receive names that feel current. Maybe they’re not trendy, but they’re trending – choices that capture 2025 naming style perfectly.
Archie, Elijah, Ezekiel, Grayson, Leo, Otto, and Wyatt all feel very of-the-moment for boys.
As for girls, two Evelyns, two Zoes, along with Lainey, Lucia, and Kora count for this category.
VINTAGE REVIVALS
Creative parents often reach into the past for naming inspiration.
Marion started out as diminutive of Marie centuries ago. It’s still used in several European languages, but is relatively rare in English. Worth noting: it’s also sometimes masculine. But it feels like an antique parents are ready to cautiously reconsider.
Next up: can we talk about Roy? Ray feels on the verge of a comeback, a short and strong name with the bright long A sound of favorites like Grayson and classics like James. But Roy? Roy is delightfully vintage, a capable kind of name. It’s easy to imagine Roy embroidered on work coveralls. But Roy also means king, from the French roi, or possibly red, from the Irish Ruadh. And, of course, it’s the given name of Roy Disney, who helmed the company after Walt’s passing. It’s a simple name containing so much meaning.
Equally intriguing, Mona might be short for Monica, an Anglicized version of an Irish name, or even a version of the Arabic Munya, meaning wish – and putting vintage Mona on the next list, too.
GLOBAL CITIZENS
Given the international rich of Pixar’s team, it’s never surprising to see Elio production babies representing the whole of the Earth.
Some names, like Mona and Diego, are easily understood in English. Diego feels more like an American staple than an import, but it is the Spanish form of James.
Nahla is an Arabic name … and quite close to Nala, a character from Disney’s The Lion King.
Aadhini is listed as a Tamil name, a language spoken in Sri Lanka. Or maybe it’s Sanskrit in origin. Sources generally given the meaning as “the first,” or possibly beginner. Search “adhi” or “aadhi” in translation dictionaries and it doesn’t confirm that meaning. But it does feel like an auspicious choice, and a 2022 Tamil-language film, Etharkkum Thunindhavan, included a character named Aadhini.
Chinese name Hong-Ye has multiple meanings, depending on the characters used to write the name. But a likely translation is “bright rainbow.” It’s an auspicious image.
FASCINATING FINDS
Every list includes a few fascinating finds, and the Elio production babies are no exception.
First up: Mira, a name with roots in India but also Europe. It might come from the Slavic element mir, meaning peace, or a Sanskrit word meaning ocean. But wait, there’s more. It could also come from the Latin word mirus – wonderful. And it just so happens there’s a star in the constellation Cetus called Mira. It’s a fascinating night sky story – pretty much perfect for parents working on a movie about adventures in outer space. One more Disney connection: from 2020 to 2022, Disney Junior ran animated series Mira, Royal Detective.
Likewise, Loni could have multiple meanings and origins. It’s short for Hawaiian names like Leilani, European ones like Eleanor/Eleonora, Ilona, Leonie, Apollonia, and nearly any other name with a strong lon sound. Alonzo/Alonso is sometimes Lonny or Lon, so this name has unisex potential, too. It’s also a place name in India, from a Sanskrit word meaning salt. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Loni Anderson was a major television star, appearing as Jennifer Marlowe in smash hit WKRP in Cincinnati, about the staff at a radio station. Anderson’s fame briefly pushed Loni into the US Top 1000. Today it’s a little bit of throwback, but also a pan-global kind of find.
Lastly, Ero might be the most interesting – and difficult to pin down – name on this list. It Finnish architect Eero Saarinen suggests that it might be a slimmed-down version of that intriguing name, which is actually the Finnish equivalent of Eric. It’s similar to the Greek god of love, Eros. Or maybe it’s from Aero, as in air and aerospace – again, very on point for this movie. Even more Elio-centric? ERO can stand for “Easily Retrievable Object,” or an asteroid passing close to the Earth. There’s lots of scientific research around EROs. Also? In our age of Leo, Arlo, and Milo, Ero just sounds like a great name for a child.
Do you have any favorites from the Elio production babies?
My guess on the Chinese name Hong-Ye would be ็ด ่, with ็ด meaning red and ่ meaning leaf, as in autumn leaves.