Summary
- Ember and Wade are in their early to mid-20s in Elemental, as they are old enough to have full-time jobs but are still figuring out their identities.
- Mamoudou Athie, the voice actor for Wade, is 35, and Leah Lewis, the voice actor for Ember, is 26, but they can manipulate their voices to match the characters’ tones and pitches.
- If Elemental gets a sequel, Ember and Wade’s next adventures could involve settling down, Ember’s glass-making becoming successful, or starting a family, all based on their self-acceptance and love as young adults.
Ember Lumen (Leah Lewis) and Wade Ripple (Mamoudou Athie) are the two element-crossed lovers at the heart of Elemental, the Pixar film that has received a resurgence in popularity on streaming, and inspired fans to wonder how old the two elements really are. In the world of Elemental, Air, Water, Fire, and Earth may all live in Element City, but the elements shoudn’t mix, but that all changes when an incident at The Fireplace, a restaurant owned by Ember’s family, sends Wade, a water element, flowing into Ember’s fiery path. The meeting sparks a bond that while not allowed, is impossible to ignore, and alters the foundation of their cohabitation.
Full of a talented and colorful cast including Catherine O’Hara as Wade’s mother Brook Ripple, and Ronnie del Carmen as Bernie, Ember’s father, Elemental showcases the power of love in the face of prejudice, as well as the opportunities presented when two young people leave old assumptions and rules behind. While it received mixed reviews upon its theatrical release, interest in the animated film has been reignited thanks to its viewership on Disney+. Certainly, Ember and Wade make one combustible pair of adventurers on their journey to self-affirmation and independence.
Ember & Wade Are In Their 20s In Elemental
Ember and Wade’s ages aren’t specifically stated in Elemental, but it’s not difficult to determine what they are through deduction and a process of elimination. For one, they’re both old enough to have full-time jobs that require a certain amount of life experience to do well; Ember helps run her family’s café The Fireplace, and Wade works as a city inspector. At the same time, they’re both young enough to be figuring out who they are as individuals out on their own in Element City, making them appear to be in their early to mid-20s.
Elemental is all about personal discovery and growth, and both Ember and Wade are on the precipice of leaving their old identities behind and embracing something new. This is most starkly represented by Ember’s journey, which lies somewhere between making her family happy and doing what feels right for her. As a young adult, she feels a specific pressure to remain the person her family perceives her to be, and, since she doesn’t want to disappoint them, doesn’t pursue her dream of glass-making until the end of Elemental, when feels mature enough to make her own choices without worrying about what her family will say.
How Old Ember & Wade’s Voice Actors Are
When it comes to the Elemental character voice actors, Mamoudou Athie, who plays Wade, is 35, and Leah Lewis, who plays Ember, is 26. Considering that animated films can take several years to put together, the two actors would have been slightly younger when they provided the voice recordings. They also have the ability to manipulate their voices to match the right tone and pitch for their characters, which comes in handy if a film like Elemental takes years to make and the actors keep aging.
While Elemental might have been a box office bomb, the interest it’s received via streaming has given fans hope that it could get a sequel. If Elemental 2 is happening, then Ember and Wade’s next adventures could include settling down somewhere other than Element City, seeing Ember’s glass-blowing internship take off and become a highly successful business, or even one day raising a family of inter-elemental children. Whatever they choose to do, it will be built on the foundation of self-acceptance and self-actualization that they built when they first fell in love as 20-somethings.
