Credit: PixarIt’s officially been confirmed that Toy Story is getting yet another addition to its seemingly never ending franchise. The Pixar cash-cow has confirmed that Tim Allen and Tom Hanks will be returning to voice Woody and Buzz for Toy Story 5, which hasn’t yet released any other information other than a confirmation it was happening.
It can be argued that the move is an attempt to recover from the failure that was Lightyear (2022) which served as a sort of in-universe movie background for the character of Buzz Lightyear, who was voiced by Chris Evans in that film. Unfortunately, the Marvel megastar was not enough to help the movie recoup its costs, and the project flopped at the box office.
Its a semi-surprising move with Toy Story in a way that both infuriates fans, but isn’t all that surprising either. When Toy Story 3 came out in 2010, fans that had grown up with the franchise considered it a fitting end to their beloved characters as Andy left for college, leaving Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the gang with an all-new kid make memories with. It tugged on the heartstrings of many, but considering that the generation that had grown up with the characters were now about the same age as Andy, it showed that he had aged right along with them.
When the characters came back for Toy Story 4 alongside a new group of characters, it led many fans to question Pixar’s decision considering the near perfect ending the franchise had already had. The simple answer is that Toy Story is profitable for Pixar and Disney. However, many fans have recently wondered why Toy Story is getting another installment when there are so many different stories, like Wall-E (2008), that are essentially ignored.
Wall-E is perhaps one of the most beloved movies from Pixar. It tells a message about humanity while delivering it in a heart-wrenching and emotional way. While the ending of the film was positive, as the humans returned to a long-abandoned earth and promised to fix it, there’s plenty of room for a sequel to be made. Especially as actual technology, like artificial intelligence rises in use, it’s a fitting and timely message to revisit.
In a recent Reddit thread asking why there isn’t more Wall-E merchandise in the Parks, u/GamerGirlCarly stated “It’s such a great movie that deserves a proper sequel. Unfortunately, Disney will often make these big merchandise runs for movie releases, then taper them off to next-to-nothing unless it’s a primary franchise draw (ie. Star Wars).”
However, u/liforlife816 disagrees, saying, “Wall-E is one of my favorite movies of all time and it’s part of a list of movies that are just perfect. I really don’t want to see a sequel…Pixar is not what it used to be and for them to make another Wall-E right now would scare me.”
As Pixar’s latest film, Elemental, deals with a disappointing performance at the box office after a lackluster to nonexistent promotional effort from Pixar, it’s no secret that the studio has had a string of disappointments in recent years. Clearly, Toy Story 5 is a safe fallback effort from Pixar to try and see some success again.
While fans beg for original ideas or sequels to beloved movies, Pixar would rather continue to milk franchises that have performed well in an effort to guarantee success. It’s unfortunately seemed to have led to Pixar’s current “flop era,” even as they consistently fail to market their original movies.
Wall-E rightfully deserves a sequel, or at least another film set within that universe. However, with Pixar’s latest track record, maybe it’s for the best that Wall-E didn’t tarnish its reputation or its standing with fans.
Does Wall-E deserve a sequel? Does Toy Story need another movie? Share your thoughts in the comments below!