Ahead Of Toy Story 5’s Release, Tom Hanks Explained Why ‘About 80 Minutes’ Of The Original Movie Had To Be ‘Completely Thrown Out’

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Pixar began in 1986, but it wasn’t until 1995 with the release of Toy Story – the first fully computer-animated movie – that they became a major film studio. Thirty years later, Pixar continues to make films regularly, and the Toy Story series is still incredibly popular. With Toy Story 5 scheduled for release in 2026, Tom Hanks, who voices Woody, recently explained that nearly 80 minutes of the original film had to be completely reworked, which caused a delay in the movie’s release.

I was watching Stephen Colbert interview Tom Hanks about his new play, and it hit me – it’s been three decades since Toy Story first came out! Colbert pointed out how long it’s been since we all met Woody, Buzz, and the gang. But Hanks quickly turned it around and started talking about how much longer it’s been for everyone who actually made the movie – the cast and crew. It’s easy to forget that for them, it’s been thirty years of memories and a whole life chapter tied to that film.

It’s actually been over 30 years since we started working on Toy Story. Early on, Tim Allen and the rest of us recorded about 80 minutes of footage for a version that ended up being scrapped. We had storyboards and preliminary animation, but the studio executives – not the Pixar team, who were fantastic – wanted to make the characters more comedic, encouraging improvisation and insults. They showed it, but it just didn’t work. It didn’t feel like Toy Story, and it wasn’t the direction Pixar had envisioned.

It’s hard to say if the earliest version of Toy Story would have been as popular as the film we all know and love. Would it have led to the four sequels, the Lightyear spinoff, and all the related merchandise like games, comics, and theme park rides? We’ll never truly know, but Tom Hanks suggests it probably wouldn’t have, especially considering the phone call he and the rest of the cast received from the director. He explained further:

We received a call saying John Lasseter, the director of Toy Story, wanted to talk to us. When you get a heads-up that the director wants to speak with you, it usually means one of two things: either you’ve made a big mistake and are about to be fired, or they have a fantastic idea and want your input.

It was funny – Tom Hanks and Stephen Colbert started joking about how Colbert felt when he found out The Late Show was ending. Then, bringing it back to Toy Story, Hanks finished that part of our conversation by saying…

John called to let us know that after reviewing our work, it wasn’t going to work out, and we needed to start the movie from the beginning. We’d already spent about two years on the project, and restarting meant another two and a half to three years of work. That’s why the end credits of the Toy Story movies jokingly refer to the production team as ‘Production Babies’ – it’s a lighthearted way of acknowledging the long ‘gestation’ period, like a couple meeting, falling in love, and eventually having a baby.

As everyone knows, Toy Story became a huge success. People who grew up watching it are now sharing it with their own kids. It’s one of Pixar’s most famous creations, and Disney is likely willing to spend a lot to get Tom Hanks and Tim Allen back for each new movie. While it would be interesting to see the 80 minutes of footage that were originally cut, most of us would agree that removing it was the right decision.

Get ready for Toy Story 5, coming to theaters on June 19, 2026! You can enjoy all the previous Toy Story movies and shorts now with a Disney+ subscription. And if you’re in New York City, be sure to see Tom Hanks in The World of Tomorrow when it opens at The Shed on November 18th.

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2025-11-05 17:42