Maria Salud Ramirez Caballero, the Mexican woman who reportedly inspired the 2017 Pixar animation Coco, has died at the age of 109.
Coco told the story of a 12-year-old boy named Miguel who travels to the Land of the Dead to meet his deceased great-great-grandfather.
One of the main characters in the film is an elderly woman named Coco, Miguel’s great-grandmother, voiced by Ana Ofelia Murguia.
Caballero’s death was announced by Roberto Monroy, the secretary of tourism for the Mexican state of Michoacan.
According to TMZ, Monroy said that she had died in Santa Fe de la Laguna of undisclosed causes.
Monroy described her as a “tireless woman and life model”.
Disney has never confirmed that Caballero was indeed the inspiration for for Coco, though her family have claimed that a Pixar team met with Caballero, photographed her and lived with her for a period.
It is also alleged that the character bears a startling resemblance to Caballero, who adopted the nickname “Mama Coco” after the film was released.
The family claim that local architecture can be seen replicated in the animated film, although they have ceased pursuing official recognition from Disney.
During her life, Caballero was a craftswoman, selling clay pots and objects to locals.
Coco was a sizable hit at the box office, taking in over $807m worldwide.
At the 90th Academy Awards ceremony in 2018, Coco took home two Oscars: one for Best Original Song (for “Remember Me”, sung by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez), and the other for Best Animated Feature.
Coco can be streamed now on Disney Plus.
