In a big surprise announcement last week, Pixar legend John Lasseter announced that a fourth feature length Toy Story was in the works and has been scheduled for release in 2017. There had been rumours spreading on the internet that a couple of months ago actor Tim Allen who voices Buzz Lightyear had agreed to a pre-contract with Pixar to sign up for a new Toy Story project. John Lasseter, who will director the new film, released a statement and said the following;
"We love these characters so much; they are like family to us. We don't want to do anything with them unless it lives up to or surpasses what's gone before. 'Toy Story 3' ended with Woody and Buzz's story with Andy so perfectly that for a long time, we never even talked about doing another 'Toy Story' movie. But when Andrew, Pete, Lee and I came up with is new idea, I could not stop thinking about it. It was so exciting to me, I knew we had to make this movie and I wanted to direct it myself."
Sounds promising. However as soon as the news was announced, film fans were immediately split on the studios decision to create another Toy Story sequel. Social media became an intense battlefield of divided opinions. Some fans expressed their delight at the plans for the iconic toy group to come back into theatres whilst others unleashed their fury, calling Disney and Pixar a boardroom of cash grabbing sellouts and are purely doing it for the benefit of their bank accounts. I can fully understand both sides of the argument. I can see why some fans are beaming with cheesy white smiles, Toy Story is a phenomenal creation and is a towering landmark in animation history. However the way that the third installment ended, smartly wrapping up a perfect conclusion to the story, I can see why people are quick to jump on Pixar's back. Here are my thoughts on the idea of Toy Story 4.
I love all the Toy Story films. They changed the way audiences viewed animated feature length productions. Family films which delve into more difficult adult themed topics such as jealously and being abandoned, consequential not feeling wanted. Pixar truly created magic twenty years ago and have continued to do so from that day onwards. What moment sticks with me the most was the conclusion to the third film. The trilogy showed the timeline of a boy who had a deep love for his toys as a child and how that love grew further apart the older he became and the strain that had on the toy's relationship with each other. At the end of Toy Story 3 when Andy passes his toys to a young child, he expresses his love for his childhood friends and how the memories will always stay him no matter how old he becomes and that is all his toys wanted to hear. That he still loves them. That ending reduced grown men to floods of tears. It was powerful, emotional and so beautifully told. Pixar produced the greatest ending to an animation I've ever witness. It was the perfect way to end the beloved characters journey. Incredible doesn't do it justice. So why would Pixar want to explore new territories with Woody, Buzz and the gang after ending on such a poignant high. John Lasseter statement doesn't make much sense. Pixar created the best ending to a trilogy possible, why bother making more Toy Story films? One word folks. Money.
I don't think John Lasseter intended to make a fourth Toy Story. The conclusion to the third film showed us that was the end to the characters story. It had gone full circle. I wouldn't be surprised if Disney executives were banging on Pixar's door everyday for the past 4 years to try and get a fourth installment into production. Toy Story as a franchise is a goldmine for Disney. It has generated more money than sense for the company. I believe this was fueled more by Disney for the purpose of increasing their already bulging bank account. Toy Story 3 made around a $750 million profit, a fair old amount. But is it a straight out cash grab? I don't think so.
A cash grab for example is a big studio making a small budget completely dreadful horror film, that sadly happens too often these days. A quick money making scheme with no thought nor effort hence creating a piece of garbage. Pixar sets far better standards than that (just forget Cars 2 for a sec!). They delivery quality for audiences and that's why we invested so much in their characters stories. In the interests of the original trilogy and how that story was told, I don't see a reason to expand upon that. I'd personally rather see an Incredibles 2 because I've only been waiting for a sequel 10 years! I don't see the necessity for a new Toy Story but money talks in the film industry. They couldn't care less about the fans interests, only the size of their wallets. Fair enough, it's a business. But Disney have been too greedy with Toy Story. Let Pixar create something else magical and not milk more money from a superb franchise which doesn't need to be touched anymore.
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