Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Toy Story 5 (2026)The Toy Story franchise has been remarkably consistent since Pixar's first film back in 1995. Every chapter has earned major critical and commercial acclaim. While that might make choosing the very best Toy Story movie difficult for others, I'm confident in my choice, especially after the release of the brand-new Toy Story 5.
The original Toy Story will always be a beloved classic, and Toy Story 3 still has one of the most emotional endings of any Pixar movie ever. Toy Story 4 gave Woody a new status quo, and the new Toy Story 5's solid message about the role of tech in children's lives was far more nuanced and entertaining than I was anticipating. However, I have long attested that Toy Story 2 is the very best movie in the entire franchise, and I think my case has only become stronger.
27 years later, I keep coming back to Toy Story 2. Having done a recent rewatch ahead of Toy Story 5, the second Toy Story movie not only holds up, but has arguably become more relevant than ever as well.
Why Toy Story 2 Has One Of The Highest Rotten Tomatoes Scores
Buzz and Woody smiling at each other in Toy Story 2's ending
It's almost unheard of for an entire franchise to maintain such massive critical acclaim across multiple films over 30 years, and yet we somehow have Toy Story. When looking at their Rotten Tomatoes scores, every movie in the original Pixar franchise has earned a 90% critics' score or higher (including connected animated shorts). However, the only two Toy Story entries to have earned a perfect 100% score are the first and second movies. When it comes to sequels, it's a pretty amazing accomplishment considering how difficult it typically is to live up to the original.
Rather than repeating more of the same, Toy Story 2 was a major expansion of the franchise's world. New characters were introduced, major dangers in the form of a sinister toy collector who kidnaps Woody, and an opportunity for Buzz Lightyear to remind Woody about his purpose, even in the face of change and the inevitability of time as kids get older.
Like all the best Pixar movies, Toy Story 2 went far beyond what was expected for a children's movie. The movie also dove into the surrounding lore of both Woody and Buzz and what made them such iconic toys in the first place (the Woody's Roundup show and Buzz's sci-fi roots with a rival Buzz Lightyear and Emperor Zurg).
To put it plainly, Toy Story 2 is so good for its excellent execution, having done a remarkable job building upon everything the original movie established while telling an even richer and more dynamic story overall.
So Much Of Toy Story 5 Continues Arcs From Toy Story 2
Sad Jessie and Woody talk in Toy Story 2
Most recently, one of the strongest arguments for Toy Story 2's importance is how much the new Toy Story 5 builds on its best concepts. First and foremost, Jessie's story is the emotional cornerstone of Toy Story 5, which naturally began in Toy Story 2. Not only do we get some incredibly satisfying payoff for Jessie's tragic parting from her original owner (Emily), but we also see Jessie becoming a central figure as a result, 27 years after she was first introduced in the first Toy Story sequel.
Likewise, Toy Story 5 expands on very similar ideas first introduced in Toy Story 5, like the concept of inevitable change (in this case, grappling with the growing emergence of tech).
Andy’s Room · Tri-County Area How Well Do You Know Toy Story? “To infinity… and beyond!”
🤠WoodyReach for the sky
🚀BuzzInfinity & beyond
👽The AliensThe claaaw
🍴ForkyI’m trash!
🧸Andy’s ToysPlayed with love
01
When Pixar released Toy Story in November 1995, it didn’t just launch a franchise — it changed the medium forever. What historic distinction did the original film claim?
✓ Howdy, partner! Toy Story was the world’s first feature-length film made entirely with computer-generated imagery — eighty-one minutes of CG when nobody had done more than a few-minute short. John Lasseter received a Special Achievement Oscar for it. (Best Animated Feature didn’t exist as a category until 2001; no animated film has ever won Best Picture; and the first $1 billion film was Titanic, two years later.)
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is: first feature-length computer-animated film. Eighty-one minutes of pure CG in 1995, when nobody else had managed more than a short. John Lasseter received a Special Achievement Oscar for it. Best Animated Feature didn’t exist as a category until 2001, no animated film has won Best Picture, and Titanic was the first billion-dollar film two years later.
02
Sheriff Woody, Andy’s pull-string cowboy doll, has been voiced by the same Oscar-winning actor across all four Toy Story films — the role helping cement him as the unofficial voice of Pixar. Who is he?
✓ Howdy, partner! Tom Hanks has voiced Woody across all four Toy Story films, the spinoff shorts, and the Disney Parks. Tim Allen is his co-lead as Buzz Lightyear. Robin Williams was actually Pixar’s first choice for Buzz, but scheduling conflicts pushed him out — he later did the genie cameo in Lightyear. Steve Carell has never been in the franchise.
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is Tom Hanks — Woody across every Toy Story film, short, and theme-park appearance. Tim Allen is the other half of the duo as Buzz Lightyear. Robin Williams was actually Pixar’s first choice for Buzz but had scheduling conflicts; Steve Carell has never been in the franchise.
03
Buzz Lightyear’s rallying cry is one of the most quoted lines in all of animation. He delivers it the moment he flips open his wrist communicator. Complete it: “To infinity…”
✓ Howdy, partner! “To infinity… and beyond!” The line got its own American Film Institute nod, was adopted (in slightly altered form) by an actual NASA mission, and even traveled to the International Space Station in 2008 on a real Buzz Lightyear action figure as part of an educational program. It’s the franchise’s most quoted line, hands down.
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is “…and beyond!” Buzz’s tagline got an AFI nod, was adopted in spirit by NASA, and a real Buzz action figure even flew to the International Space Station in 2008 on a STEM education mission. It’s the most quoted line in the franchise.
04
The toys all live in the bedroom of a boy named Andy, whose name is written in marker on the bottom of each of their feet. What is Andy’s last name, shown on the family mailbox and on his college acceptance envelope?
✓ Howdy, partner! Andy Davis — his last name appears on the family mailbox, on the “Davis” minivan, and on the college envelope in Toy Story 3. His mom is Mrs. Davis (first name never officially revealed in-film, though a fan theory says “Emily,” aka Jessie’s old owner). Bonnie, the toys’ eventual new owner, has the last name Anderson.
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is Davis. It’s on the family mailbox, the minivan, and Andy’s college envelope in Toy Story 3. Bonnie (who inherits the toys at the end of TS3) is Bonnie Anderson — close, but a different family.
05
“You’ve Got a Friend in Me” opens the first Toy Story and has been reprised in every sequel. The same singer-songwriter composed the score for all four films — one of Hollywood’s most decorated film composers. Who is he?
✓ Howdy, partner! Randy Newman wrote “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” and scored every Toy Story film — he also did Monsters, Inc., A Bug’s Life, Cars, and The Princess and the Frog. He’s a 22-time Oscar nominee with two wins. Michael Giacchino is Pixar’s other regular (The Incredibles, Up, Inside Out), Menken is Disney’s Renaissance musical guy, and Zimmer handles Lion King territory.
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is Randy Newman. He wrote “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” and scored every Toy Story film (plus Monsters, Inc., Cars, and A Bug’s Life). Michael Giacchino is Pixar’s other regular composer (The Incredibles, Up, Inside Out); Alan Menken handled Disney’s Renaissance musicals; Hans Zimmer did The Lion King.
06
In Toy Story 3, the gang ends up at Sunnyside Daycare, where everything seems wonderful at first. The day-care’s leader is a pink plush bear who smells like strawberries and turns out to be the franchise’s darkest villain. What’s his name?
✓ Howdy, partner! Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear — “Lotso” for short — voiced by Ned Beatty. The backstory of how he ended up at Sunnyside (replaced by an identical bear after being left in the rain by his original owner) is one of the franchise’s saddest beats. Stinky Pete is the TS2 villain (Kelsey Grammer), Zurg is from TS2 as well, and Gabby Gabby is the TS4 antagonist who gets her redemption.
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is Lotso — Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear, voiced by Ned Beatty. The TS3 reveal that he was replaced by an identical bear after his original owner left him in the rain is one of Pixar’s darkest beats. Stinky Pete is TS2 (Kelsey Grammer), Emperor Zurg is also TS2, and Gabby Gabby is the redemption-arc antagonist from TS4.
07
In Toy Story 4, Bonnie cobbles together a brand-new toy during a kindergarten arts-and-crafts session, sparking the whole plot when he wails “I’m trash!” and tries to throw himself away. What everyday utensil is Forky made from?
✓ Howdy, partner! Forky is a spork — with googly eyes, a popsicle-stick foot, pipe-cleaner arms, and a red plasticine mouth. He’s voiced by Tony Hale (Veep, Arrested Development), and his existential terror about being “trash” rather than a toy is the whole emotional engine of TS4. He got his own Disney+ shorts series after.
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is a spork — with pipe-cleaner arms, googly eyes, and a popsicle-stick foot. He’s voiced by Tony Hale, and his “I’m trash!” meltdown is the heart of TS4. He even got his own Disney+ short series, Forky Asks a Question.
08
Toy Story 3 ends with one of the most emotionally devastating scenes Pixar has ever made: Andy, packing for college, hand-delivers his old toys to a new owner in her front yard and plays with them one last time. Who is she?
✓ Howdy, partner! Bonnie Anderson — the imaginative little girl Woody had met earlier in the film when she “adopted” him from her mom’s day-care lost-and-found. Andy goes through every toy with her one by one before driving off to college. It’s the franchise’s natural ending. Bonnie then becomes the toys’ new owner in Toy Story 4.
✗ Aw, shucks! The answer is Bonnie Anderson — the imaginative little girl Woody had encountered earlier in the film. Andy goes through every single toy with her, one by one, before leaving for college. She becomes the toys’ new owner for Toy Story 4. Molly is Andy’s little sister (she gives up Barbie in TS3, but never inherits the gang).
The Toys Have Spoken · Play Time Over Your Toy Box Verdict
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/ 8
Andy’s favorite — or destined for the yard sale?
Additionally, Buzz Lightyear owes much of his ongoing story to Toy Story 2. After all, the sequel gave Emperor Zurg his first on-screen debut, revealing that Buzz's fictional universe wasn't that far off from Star Wars, hence the hilarious parody of The Empire Strikes Back, with Zurg revealing himself to be Buzz's father, and Toy Story 5 plays off the same joke in the new Pixar movie.
Toy Story 5 also features a whole army of brand-new hi-tech Buzz Lightyears, not unlike the entire aisle of new Buzz Lightyears in Al's Toy Barn still in the box, as well as the rival Utility Belt Buzz, who still thought he was a genuine space ranger (just like the new Buzz army).
All things considered, so many of Toy Story 5's best moments have origins dating back to Toy Story 2, proving just how influential the movie was on the whole franchise.
Few Pixar Movies Have Cooler (Or Scarier) Scenes In Their First 12 Minutes
Buzz Lightyear flying through space in Toy Story 2
On a personal level, it's also worth mentioning that even before its emotional story begins, Toy Story 2 delivers one of Pixar's greatest opening acts.
Right off the bat, the movie initially convinces audiences they're watching Buzz Lightyear's latest heroic adventure, battling evil robots and facing Emperor Zurg in his secret lair, only for Buzz to be vaporized with the reveal that it's just Rex playing a Buzz Lightyear video game. Nevertheless, it absolutely stood out as one of the most epic sci-fi action sequences I'd ever seen in an animated movie during my childhood, especially at the time, as a four-year-old. The entire sequence is easily one of the most epic animated movie fakeouts of all time.
We then see Woody reeling after a rip in his arm sees him being left at home instead of going to cowboy camp with Andy. We then get another fakeout where Andy throws Woody in a trash can for being broken, speaking in an unsettling monotone as he says goodbye to a panicking and horrified Woody as various toy limbs drag him down, only for the sheriff to wake up from his nightmare. Again, definitely one of the scariest movie scenes I'd ever seen at the time, being four years old.
Likewise, what's truly remarkable about these great scenes is that they both happen within Toy Story 2's first 12 minutes. The opening video game sequence made Buzz look cooler than ever, while Woody's nightmare was genuinely terrifying in a way I don't think I'd ever quite experienced from an animated movie before.
It's that contrast that perfectly captures why Toy Story 2 remains so special. It truly does balance adventure, comedy, suspense, and genuine, mature storytelling. At least in my mind, it's no wonder why its influence can still be felt 27 years later in Toy Story 5.
Toy Story 5 is now playing in theaters from Disney and Pixar Studios.
Release Date
November 24, 1999
Runtime
92 minutes
Director
Ash Brannon, John Lasseter, Lee Unkrich
Writers
Andrew Stanton, Doug Chamberlin, Rita Hsiao, Chris Webb
