When Pixar’s Inside Out premiered in 2015, it invited audiences to explore the world inside young Riley’s mind, where her emotions took center stage. Now, with Inside Out 2 joining the 2024 movie release schedule, fans have been able to reconnect with Riley as she navigates her teenage years—an experience that quickly made the sequel one of Pixar’s best movies and the highest-grossing animated film. Yet, in a recent interview, director Kelsey Mann revealed that a surprising narrative twist called for an end-credits scene to clarify Riley’s "deep, dark secret"—and his reason for doing so might just surprise you.
In an interview with CinemaBlend's Managing Editor Sean O'Connell at the SCAD Savannah Film Festival, Mann admitted that he originally wanted to keep Riley’s secret ambiguous, trusting audiences would embrace a little mystery. But as reactions to early screenings rolled in, it became clear that viewers' imaginations were running wild—wild enough to merit a course correction to safeguard Riley’s innocence. In his words:
Initially, I wanted to leave that open-ended. I thought that would be really fun to have the audience guess what that was. But I'll be really honest, some people took it to a dark place. Aren't you surprised? I was surprised, too. Some people thought that she had something tragic happen to her as a child. I'm like, ‘No, I never thought that.' I always intended it to be that kind of secret that you have as a kid where you accidentally spill something on grandma's couch cushion, and so you flip it. That’s what I intended it to be. But some people took it to a dark place, and I go, ‘I'm gonna have to make sure that people know Riley's okay!’
If you haven’t watched Inside Out 2 yet—and really, why not? It’s available to stream with a Disney+ subscription—here’s a minor spoiler warning. The “deep, dark secret” in question arises when Joy, driven by curiosity, sets out to uncover what Riley has kept hidden in the depths of her mind. As she encounters a mysterious character guarding this secret, the suspense builds, leaving viewers to wonder if Riley’s secret might be something truly scandalous. But as it turns out, the truth is far more innocent.
Riley’s big “secret”? She accidentally burned a hole in the family rug—and her parents still don’t know about it. For an anxious teenager like Riley, keeping this small mishap hidden feels crucial; getting grounded could be a social disaster! While this little blunder doesn’t set up a dramatic plot twist for a future film, it’s exactly the kind of lighthearted, relatable moment fans adore. And with Inside Out 2’s success, the director has hinted there could be more fun, revealing moments like this in a potential sequel.
With the huge success of Inside Out 2, the next Pixar sequel might not be far off. Although the director knows some fans think Pixar already has too many sequels, an Inside Out 3 just might be on the horizon.
