February 10, 2023
Tim Allen will Return to ‘Toy Story 5’
After missing ‘Lightyear’ last summer, the actor is back in the franchise.
Last night, Disney dropped a bomb toy-sized during its quarterly earnings call with investors. They announced sequels to some beloved properties like Toy Story.
In the wake of the announcement, Tim Allen, the original franchise star, took to Twitter to confirm that he would be returning as Buzz Lightyear. He also hinted that the film would feature a reunion with Woody Hanks’ cowboy, Woody.
Allen announced that although no casting information has been released for the film yet, he said: “See you soon Woody. You are a sad, strange little man and I have my pity.” We’re off to number 5. To infinity and beyond!”
Following the release of the Toy Story spin-off Lightyear last year, Allen was the topic of much discussion online. The film was a meta-review of the character and told the story about “real life (fictional), a character on which the toys are based”. The film starred Chris Evans. It was a box-office failure for Pixar and was met with mixed reviews. Many fans were unhappy that Allen was being replaced.
Toy Story is one of Disney’s most successful IPs
The Toy Story films were a huge success creatively and financially for Disney. From a $520 million cumulative budget, the films have earned more than $3 billion. Lightyear was, in comparison, a financial disaster for Disney. It grossed just $ 226 million from a budget of $200 million. Every Toy Story film was nominated for an Academy Award upon release. This includes two Best Animated Feature wins and a Special Achievement Award for 1996 for “First Feature-Length Computer Animated Film”.
Both Disney and Pixar have to take some risks when releasing a new Toy Story movie. This is both creative and financial. Toy Story 3 won the Academy Award for Best Picture. The original trilogy is considered to be the greatest of all time. Toy Story 4 was considered the epilogue of the story. However, despite being apprehensive, it was a stunningly emotional film that ended the characters’ arcs beautifully in a satisfying manner. It is risky to go back to the ending, as it could unravel the neat bow that tied the story.