reminded us over the weekend that not only will there be a Toy Story 5 coming to theaters in the summer of 2026, but that Woody, Buzz, Jessie, and “the gang” would be returning for the new installment. I say reminded because this wasn’t really an announcement, per se – technically, the first confirmation of Toy Story 5’s existence was in a February 2023 Q1 earning call, tacked on to Disney CEO Bob Iger’s announcement that 7,000 Dis🍌꧟ney employees were being laid off. A release date was also announced in April 2024. This year’s D23 Entertainment Showcase is probably the biggest platform that Pixar has used to publicise the film’s existence so far, though, and it’s therefore also attracted the most backlash.
As someone who doesn’t really care about the supposed sanctity of media from my childhood, I hesitate to stand on the same side as people who think the movies they loved as kids are sacred turf that should never be retread. It doesn’t bother me that the cartoons I watched when I was eight look different now, because I’m not eight anymore and I’m not still watching them. They’re for a new generation of kids, not for me. And yet, when it comes to Toy Story, it feels undoubtedlཧy like Pixar is butchering one of its most beloved franchises.
Everybody Knows Toy Story Should Have Ended In 2010
I’m not saying anything particularly controversial here. 2010’s Toy Story 3 was hailed by many as the perfect culmination to a trilogy of films that explore growing up, loss, and love. It was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. It made a lot of people cry. It made it to the top ten of a lot of “Best Films Of The 2010s” lists, which is a prett෴y big deal for an animated movie, considering the genre is often derided as being for children. People loved Toy Story 3 because of its 🤡message about being able to say goodbye to the things you love, because nothing lasts forever.
And then Toy Story 4 came out.
I’m not going to litigate whether Toy Story 4 was good or not, because I’m not a diehard Toy Story fan and quite frankly, I don’t really care. Arguably, Toy Story 3 was the ending of Andy’s story, and a lot of people think it should have stopped there. Toy Story 4 was the end of Woody’s story, and most people think that this signified a definitive end, whether or not they thought the movie was well executed. These later movies are about endings, and yet, Toy Story just won’t end.
Does Deadpool Dethroning The Passion Of The Chri꧟st ওActually Say Anything About American Culture?
Deadpool & Wolverine passed The Passion of the Chr⭕ist to become the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time in the United States.
Of All The Franchises To Cling To, Why This One?
There’s no point in me railing against the evils of constant sequels and the recycling of IP to capitalise on nostalgia 🐎and brand names, because we all know it sucks. Most of us are sick of it, but corporations keep doing it, because we keꦕep showing up to movie theatres and giving them our hard-earned cash. Unlike Pixar, I don’t want to beat a dead horse.
What’s more perplexing to me is that after so many opportunities to leave the series on a high note, especially considering its the🀅mes, Pixar keeps trying ♚to breathe new life into these tired characters. Why not turn to a franchise that isn’t completely exhausted? It’s not like Pixar is shy about its love for sequels. Incredibles, my favourite movie when I was a kid, already has a third movie in the works. Finding Nemo has a sequel in Finding Dory. Cars has three films. Inside Out also has a sequel. Monsters, Inc. has both a prequel and two seasons of a sequel TV show.
As much as I abhor a pointless seꦦquel, Pixar has plenty of beloved IPs to mine for cash grabs. Why not look at one of those, instead? Against my better instincts, I’m putting it out there that I’d love to see a sequel to the 1998 Pixar masterpiece that introduced me to anti-colonial and anti-capitalist ideas, the widely adored A Bug’s Life.
Remember Onward? Neither does Pixar.
If Toy Story teaches us anything, it’s that nothing lasts forever… except franchises. Those go on, and🐎 on, and on. I’m just asking Pixar to zombify something else, because this series is already rotting.
The Borderlands Movie Was Alwa🏅ys A Bad Idea
When youꦇ take away the gameplay and the art style, you're only really left wit🔯h the obnoxious humor.