Renée Victor, the voice of no-nonsense Abuelita in 'Coco,' dies at 86

Renée Victor, who voiced the no-nonsense, sandal-throwing Abuelita successful Disney’s animated deed “Coco” and played the wisecracking Lupita connected Showtime’s “Weeds,” has died. She was 86.

Victor’s decease was confirmed connected Monday by a representative, Julie Smith, who said the histrion had lymphoma for respective years. She died Friday astatine her location successful Sherman Oaks, California, Smith said, with household by her side.

A station connected the Instagram provender of Pixar, which produced “Coco,” said: “We are heartbroken to perceive of the passing of Renée Victor, the dependable (of) Abuelita successful ‘Coco’ and an unthinkable portion of the Pixar family. We volition ever retrieve you.”

Victor appeared successful 22 episodes of “Weeds” arsenic sassy housekeeper Lupita betwixt 2005 and 2012, among galore different TV credits including “ER,” “Matlock” and “The Addams Family.” But she was possibly champion known for what she called the chancla-throwing grandma successful “Coco,” the 2017 family-friendly movie that explored decease done the travel of a young Mexican lad to the onshore of the dead.

“I play the portion of ‘Abuelita,’ the chancla throwing grandma that preaches ‘No Music!’” she wrote connected Instagram, looking backmost respective years ago. “Enjoy ‘Coco’ with your household this Dia de los Muertos and everlastingly more!”

She besides looked backmost astatine “The Apostle,” the 1997 movie that Robert Duvall wrote, directed and starred in. “He took a accidental connected maine with this film,” Victor wrote connected Instagram. “This is wherever I got my nickname ‘one instrumentality Renée,’” she said, adding laughter emojis. “I had a tiny relation but what a large one! Can idiosyncratic springiness maine an amen?!”

Born successful San Antonio, Texas, connected July 25, 1938, Victor began her performing vocation arsenic a vocalist and dancer. She moved to Los Angeles successful the 1960s, according to biography worldly provided by her representatives, wherever she launched her vocation singing with salient large set leaders Xavier Cugat and Pérez Prado. She besides taught Latin dancing, including the salsa and tango.

She met her aboriginal husband, Ray, during that period, and from 1963 to 1973, they performed unneurotic arsenic “Ray & Renée,” a assortment amusement took them astir the satellite — including Australia, wherever “they enjoyed peculiar fame,” the materials said.

In the 1970s, Victor hosted the “Pacesetters” nationalist affairs amusement connected KTLA, her representatives said, and by the ’80s had moved into TV and movie work.

Her movie credits, different than “The Apostle,” included the 2014 fearfulness movie “Paranormal Activity 5: The Marked Ones,” “The Doctor” with William Hurt (1991), and “A Night successful Old Mexico” (2013), besides with Duvall. In 2004, she had a recurring relation arsenic Florina Lopez connected TV's “ER,” and the pursuing twelvemonth was formed successful “Weeds.” Other bid credits included “Snowpiercer” (2020-2021), “Mayans M.C.” (2022), “Dead to Me” (2020-2022), and Amazon’s “With Love” (2021-2023).

Victor is survived by her daughters, Raquel and Margo Victor, Smith said.