D23 2024 is in the books and, as somebody who was there, I have to say it was a fairly successful show. Disney fans were able to get a strong look at what the future holds for both the movie studios and the theme parks. While most fans seem quite happy with what they heard, there are a few issues that people have, and a lot of them concern the Toy Story 5 announcements, which garnered funny and blistering takes from Internet users.
Bob Iger previously announced Toy Story 5 was on the way but, over the weekend, fans learned (officially) that franchise writer Andrew Stanton would direct the film, and a bit about its plot. Toy Story 5 was one of a couple of upcoming Pixar movies that are sequels that were announced, and some seem to feel that Disney is relying a bit too heavily on its franchises.
"the incredibles 3" "frozen 3" "toy story 5" pic.twitter.com/QMlAs9de8qAugust 10, 2024
While movie trilogies are basically expected of any movie that becomes a hit, Toy Story has certainly expanded past that, not only making a fourth film but now a fifth. What’s most interesting about that the IP isn’t even the only animated franchise with a fifth installment scheduled for release in 2026, and yet, the reaction to Shrek 5 has been very different:
Why does toy story 5 feel like a franchise going on for way too long while shrek 5 is just something that everyones wanted https://t.co/oedJGUxIW5July 9, 2024
It’s certainly true that people seem a bit more excited about the return of the Shrek franchise than they do about the Toy Story series. Perhaps that’s just because the fourth installment of that movie series is almost 15 years old, so it’s been away longer. Still, for others, there’s a feeling that Toy Story 5 is simply an unoriginal idea, and Pixar should focus more on those:
they need to start using their creativity and stop with these absolutely unnecessary sequels pic.twitter.com/PR2xRMgsD0August 10, 2024
In addition to Toy Story 5, Pixar has two new original ideas coming out in the future, the sci-fi adventure Elio, which we learned more about D23, and the newly announced Hoppers. So there are original ideas on the way. However, for others, the issue is that the plot of TS5 is what seems less original as it falls back on a tired trope:
Toy Story 1: What if toys were alive?Toy Story 2: What is your worth?Toy Story 3: What happens when you are outgrown?Toy Story 4: What measures a life?Toy Story 5: These kids and their damn phones https://t.co/AcLSxUgWfNAugust 10, 2024
While what we know about Toy Story 5 is still quite limited, there will almost certainly be more to the story than simply the surface-level plot of toys vs. technology. However, we’ll have to wait a couple of years to see what that's all about. Of course, by the time the movie comes out, the franchise will be over 30 years old, and some of the original audience will be in a very different place compared to where they were at the beginning:
Toy Story 5 pic.twitter.com/x80YHWb7pVAugust 10, 2024
It should be said that not everybody is down on Toy Story 5. For some, the franchise has continued to be valuable through four installments. So there’s no reason to believe that the fifth will be any less special:
Yes there’s too many Toy Story movies but they’re so comfy and cozy and I love every single one of them 🤷🏾♀️😂 And the concept of them going up against more modern tech driven toys is so interesting and fresh, I’m definitely seeing Toy story 5 ! 🥰 #D23 pic.twitter.com/qEZoXCLq61August 10, 2024
Whether or not the world needs Toy Story 5, the movie is coming, so we can only hope that it will be good. A lot of people shared similar sentiments about Toy Story 4, arguing nobody needed the film. That movie was well reviewed by critics and fans and made Pixar and Disney $1 billion globally. If the fifth movie can repeat that success, everybody will be quite happy. For right now, you can stream the first four installments with a Disney+ subscription.
