Detective Pikachu had great fun with the world of Pokémon, and one of the best examples was its use of Ditto, the shapeshifting Pokémon who transformed multiple times in the movie. The purple-pink amorphous Pokémon can transform into a replica of any object or creature, including humans, although he’s sometimes unable to change its face.
Ditto was cleverly included in Detective Pikachu in a twist that took many fans by surprise, especially as Dittos rarely transform into humans, although it has happened before. As explained by director Rob Letterman, Ditto transformed into a human with beady eyes in an episode of the Pokémon anime, so his transformation in Detective Pikachu was canon, and worked perfectly with the storyline of genetic experiments by Howard Clifford (Bill Nighy). But like any other Ditto in the world of Pokémon, he took many other shapes in the film.
Near the end of Detective Pikachu, it was revealed that Ditto had been hiding in plain sight all the time, taking the form of Ms. Norman (Howard’s bodyguard) and Roger Clifford, Howard’s son, as it’s a genetically modified Pokémon. Seconds later, he transformed into a Loudred to attack Tim, and later into Lucy Stevens with beady eyes, showing why Norman and Roger always wore sunglasses. When Mewtwo, under Howard’s control, ordered Ditto to end Tim, it took the shape of a couple of Pokémon. First, a Machamp that punched Tim through the window glass, followed by a Cubone that hit Tim’s fingers with his bone to make him fall, only to be smacked out of the window by the real Roger.
Ditto transformed into a Braviary and flew back into the building, knocking Roger out by taking the shape of a Bouffalant. It then transformed into a Charizard to attack Tim, who unleashed a pipe of R in its face, causing it to transform into different Pokémon very fast before passing out. The shapes that can be seen in these quick transformations are Mr. Mime, Squirtle, Bouffalant, and Loudred – with beady eyes, of course.
Curiously, Ditto didn’t transform into any Pokémon that hadn’t been shown in Detective Pikachu before. Cubone is one of the first to show up in the film, Machamp is seen directing traffic, Pikachu fights against a Charizard, a Bouffalant can be seen among the crowd as well as Braviary and Squirtle, Loudreds are used as loudspeakers, and the group interrogates a Mr. Mime before meeting Sebastian. Ditto and its incredible abilities couldn’t have been left out from Detective Pikachu, and hopefully it will return in the sequel to surprise fans one more time.
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