22 (Soul)

“	Maybe sky-watching could be my spark. Or walking. I'm really good at walking!	„
	~ 22's catchphrase.

22 is the deuteragonist of Pixar's 23rd full-length animated feature film Soul, and the titular main protagonist of its prequel short film 22 vs. Earth.

She was an unborn soul from the Great Before who initially didn't have any interest in making contact with any living body, knowing what is it like to live in Earth thanks to several historical guides. When Joe Gardner arrived in the Great Beyond, she helps him in getting back to his original body, only for her to accidentally take it. However, the more she has experiences on Earth while inside his body, the more she became comfortable with it, something which even Joe supported.

She is voiced by Tina Fey, who also played Roxanne Ritchi in Megamind, Kate Ellis in Sisters, and Clair Foster in Date Night.

Bio

22 is an unborn soul who has been around at the You Seminar for a very long time. She has had mentors such as Mother Teresa, Abraham Lincoln, Marie Antoinette, and Copernicus, who've failed and now hate her. She knows everything about Earth, and has tried everything, but isn’t interested in life. Joe Gardner comes to the You Seminar and tries to convince 22 that life is worth living. When all else fails, 22 decides to take Joe to the Astral Plane, where Moonwind tries to reconnect Joe to his body. Joe rushes to get back to his body, but pushes 22 in the portal with him. Joe lands in a therapy cat's body, and 22 lands in Joe's body. 22 tries to get out of his body and back to the You Seminar, but throughout the day, she discovers the simple things in life and finds her spark.

Appearance

In the You Seminar, 22 appears as an ethereal spectrum of light. She has a head, arms, and a body, but no legs. She has blushing cheeks and and overbite. She has purple eyes.

Personality

22 is a pessimistic, outspoken, punctual, hopeful, stubborn skeptic.

Trivia

22 has had previous mentors in the form of historical figures such as Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Mother Teresa, Muhammad Ali, Copernicus, Archimedes, and Marie Antoinette.
- According to 22, she made Mother Teresa cry and she seemed rather giddy about it. One of the Jerrys tells Joe to ignore what she said, hinting that it was personal for Teresa.
- Since Archimedes is the most ancient soul 22 is shown to have met, it means that she has spent at least 2,200 years in the Great Before, considering that Archimedes would have arrived to the Great Before immediately following his death in 212 BCE. However, as her name implies her to be the 22nd soul ever created, she is almost certainly much older.
22 sounds like a "middle-aged white lady" because, according to her, it is the most annoying voice she could think of, adding that she could sound like whoever she wants.
Whenever 22 shapeshifts into someone, she still has her purple eyes.
When 22 and Joe enter the Astral Plane, she claims that she has been messing with the New York Knicks for decades, which is a reference to the Knicks' reputation of continually losing games.
Her box contains items such as her previous mentors' name tags, the Pixar Ball, among other items. The name tags are in all different languages, hinting that she understands multiple languages.
Near the end of the movie, when she finally heads to Earth, she is facing Asia, more specifically western China, hinting that her human life will be spent as an Asian/Chinese person/animal. However, the directors hinted at the possibility of 22 being of Indian decent, as that was considered one of the original endings.
Though 22 goes by she/her pronouns, she is not considered female and has no gender, as souls can choose what they sound like.
22 was the twenty-second human ever created, presumably in the history of the world. This is of course how she earns her namesake throughout the film.
- Her name is also a play on the phrase "catch-22," which is a paradoxical situation from which someone can't escape from because of contradictory rules or limitations.
- In a possible coincidence, 22 Pixar feature films have been released before Soul.
  - In another coincidence, Joe's heart monitor machine model is a "SmrtVu PX-22".
At one point, the filmmakers considered ending the movie with Joe meeting 22 in human form, but abandoned this idea because every version they tried always felt unfulfilling.
According to 22, she is content being in the Great Before. She has her routine which includes, floating in the mist, doing her sudoku puzzles, and, once a week, is forced to attend a You Seminar.
22's "Old Man Voice" was one of Ed Asner's final film roles.

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