Carl's Date: Is That Ed Asner's Voice - And Is It Really Pixar's Final Up Story?

In Ed Asner's acting career, the one role that stands above the rest is easily his turn as news director Lou Grant on the legendary CBS sitcom "Mary Tyler Moore" in the 1970s. But to newer generations, Asner's voice role in Pixar's "Up" came to redefine the actor's success in the late 2000s, as the veteran film and TV star brought heart to his voice role as the grumpy but lovable widower Carl Fredricksen.

At first, it seemed to be a one-and-done situation for "Up" when it was released in 2009, even though the short film "Dug's Special Mission" accompanied the film's home video release. However, Pixar surprised audiences 12 years later in 2021, when the Disney+ series "Dug Days" let fans revisit the beloved Pixar movie. And while the Disney+ series was named for Carl's faithful, four-legged companion Dug — who communicates through a high-tech voice collar — Asner was still featured in the voice cast as Carl. As such, it seemed the series of shorts was a bittersweet parting gift to fans since Asner passed away a mere two days before its premiere.

Now, Asner's back as the voice of his beloved character once again in "Carl's Date," a Pixar short film that is playing before the studio's new animated feature "Elemental," which is now in theaters. According to TheWrap, "Up" co-director and co-writer Bob Peterson — who also voices the inquisitive canine — confirmed that Asner recorded the dialogue for the new "Dug Days" short film in spring 2021, just months before his death at 91.

In "Carl's Date," Dug helps Carl calm his pre-date nerves as he plans a date with a lady friend, a challenge to the curmudgeon since he has no idea how dating works in this day and age. In an interview with Animation Magazine, Bob Peterson said that Pixar only had one recording session with Ed Asner for "Carl's Date," but he was amazed at how quickly Asner brought the right sense of nuance to the material. "We really looked for takes that would honor him as best we could and would tell the story with Ed Asner's humor and heart and gruffness. It was all in there and it was fun finding the best of it," Peterson explained.

At the Pixar presentation, Peterson noted that Carl's titular date in the short film — his first since the passing of his longtime wife, Ellie, in "Up" — is considered to be a "bow" that tops off the story of "Up," TheWrap reported. Along with that analogy, though, came news from Peterson — who directed and co-wrote the short with Pete Docter — that "Carl's Date" would also be the final "Up" story, at least for the time being.

It's hard to say what Bob Peterson meant when he said it's the last "Up" story for now at the Pixar presentation. It could be that while Carl is riding off into the sunset, there might be room for more "Dug Days" — can fans ever get enough of Dug yelling "squirrel"? On top of that, the other principal character in "Up" — Jordan's Nagai's intrepid Wilderness Explorer Russell — could conceivably come back into the picture. Even though Nagai voiced the role as a child and is 23 now, there's no doubt that technology could make the actor sound younger again.

No matter what happens from here, the producer of "Carl's Date," Kim Collins, wants the short film to be more of a celebration of Asner in the role rather than it serving as a memorial of his loss. "I think [that the] idea of honoring [Ed Asner] carried forward when we went into animation, and you want the team with all the different animators to be able to balance honoring him because he's gone at that point, but at the same time not wanting to bring that sort of sorrow and to just really have it truly be Carl," Collins told Animation Magazine. "That is how people will always think of Carl Fredricksen, and I think that's what I remember about just in the animation, as well."

"Carl's Date" is playing before the Pixar feature "Elemental," now in theaters.