Sun Yee is one of the two overarching protagonists (alongside Ming Lee) of Pixar's 25th full-length animated feature film Turning Red.
She is the ancestor of Mei and her family, as well as a scholar and poet, who had a mystical connection to red pandas until she was blessed by the gods with the ability to turn into a red panda, a gift that was passed down to her descendants.
History
Sun Yee was a scholar and poet who took it upon herself to protect the creatures of the forest, especially the red pandas, as their fiery fur and mischievous nature led her to love them more. When the war came and Sun Yee had to face hard times, the gods granted her wish to become a giant red panda during a phenomenon known as the Red Moon, so she could defend her daughters and the village from bandits and other dangers presented to them. After that, she found a way to pass her gift on to her daughters, who then passed on their mother's blessing to their own children when they came of age.
But the change of the world and the relocation of their family to other parts turned the blessing into an inconvenience that they wanted to free themselves from.
At the end of the film, Sun Yee's spirit meets Mei in the Astral Realm and accepts her decision to keep her red panda spirit.
Personality
When Mei first met her, she was very quiet. She was shown to be protective of her daughters and prayed to the gods for a gift to turn into a red panda to protect her and her village.
Sun Yee was a scholar, poet and animal lover who prayed for a miracle during times of war. When China was consumed by war, and all the men were slain, what survived of her family and home were endangered. She prayed to the Gods for salvation. For her love and kindness towards nature, they answered her prayers, and Sun Yee was blessed with a red panda spirit that enabled her to transform into a giant red panda. She defeated the whole army that threatened her village and her two beloved daughters. In addition to being a fierce protector of her family, Sun Yee is caring, sympathetic, and understanding towards Mei.
Appearance
Human
She has a red traditional hanfu with a greenish brown undershirt pinned up to the neck. She is wearing a crown and red sashes floating around. Like the rest of her descendants, she has red hair after turning into the panda.
Red Panda
As a red panda, she has bright red fur which shifts to a darker red when it reaches her arms. She has long, dark eyelashes and wears a gold and red crown upon her head with a floating red sash.
Role in the Film
She is a revered ancestor of the Lee family. She had a fondness of red pandas. She asked the gods to give her the power to harness her emotions and transform into a red panda to protect her daughters and her village. She passed this gift on to her daughters and her descendants.
Relationships
Trivia
- It is clear that Sun Yee kept her red panda form, since it was shown in the movie.
- She and Mei are the only members left keeping the red panda, at least so far.
- Despite having female descendants, it is unknown if Sun Yee has any male descendants. However, deleted scenes and stories indicated that Mei would have a male cousin, Leo.
Gallery
References
| v - eCharacters | ||
|---|---|---|
| Main Characters | Meilin Lee • Ming Lee | |
| Supporting Characters | Jin Lee • Abby Park • Miriam Mendelsohn • Priya Mangal | |
| Minor Characters | 4★Town: Robaire, Tae Young, Jesse, Aaron T. & Aaron Z. • Tyler Nguyen-Baker • Devon • Mr. Kieslowski • Sun Yee • Wu • Helen • Ping • Lily • Chen • Mr. Gao • Carter Murphy-Mayhew • Goth Girl• Stacy Frick • Lauren • Malik | |