The Heartbreaking Number Of Years Bruno Spent Hiding In Encanto

"Encanto" might just be one of the most heartwrenching films to come out of Disney. When you look past the catchy songs and magical powers, you have a story about a family that always feels like they must reach some kind of ideal set by the matriarch, Abuela (María Cecilia Botero) or else feel like they're letting her down in some way. Every family member feels the pressure, like Luisa (Jessica Darrow), believing she always has to be strong and can't show weakness for a second. There's also Pepa (Carolina Gaitán), whose emotions are connected to the weather, so she thinks she can never show any negative feelings or else the nearby town will experience horrific rain.

And of course, we have to talk about Bruno (John Leguizamo). As mentioned repeatedly in the song "We Don't Talk About Bruno," he foresaw the future, which irritated everyone he told their prophecy to because the visions were never particularly pleasant. Feeling as though he let his family down, Bruno left, and while everyone thought he moved far away, he stayed within the house's walls so that he could at least be marginally close to his loved ones.

Bruno's story is a sad one. His power went misunderstood, and since it wasn't seen as valuable as healing others or moving buildings, he left. But his situation becomes all the sadder the more you think about it, as some Redditors have discovered.

It's obvious Bruno's been in the walls for a long time. After all, he's been there long enough to where he felt the need to develop alternate personalities to try to keep himself company. And while he never mentions precisely how long he's been in the walls, fans can make some educated guesses. 

In one Reddit thread, u/MoonNightLight030 points out, "If Maribel is 15 and the kids get their gift at 5, then Bruno's been living like that for 10 years." It makes sense the earliest Bruno would see a vision of the children is after they receive their powers. But as other fans are quick to point out, it's possible he's been in the walls for fewer years, like u/swstephe writing, "Bruno is Mirabel's uncle, and being one of a set of triplets, is the same age as Mirabel's mother and aunt. Apparently, he didn't disappear immediately." 

Regardless, it's clear Antonio (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), who's five years old, never met his uncle, so regardless, Bruno's been in the walls for sometime between five and 10 years, which is devastating no matter which way you slice it. Fans can't help but feel terrible for the way Bruno was treated by his family for so many years, to the point where they just pretended he didn't exist. As u/Cinebella mentions, "This is a man that felt so rejected by his family he pretended to run away and instead lived in the walls of his family home ((that is alive and can feel and talk but doesn't say anything to anyone that Bruno is in the walls??? or the cousin that can hear everything and doesn't hear him sad in the walls?)) and instead he watches his family eat, be together and celebrate birthdays through different cracks in the home."

By the end of the movie, it's delightful to see people not only talking about Bruno, but finally embracing him.