Toy Story was the movie that launched Pixar's foray into feature-length storytelling, and thanks to the two sequels that followed in 1999 and 2010, respectively, not to mention Toy Story 4 on the way, there's a lot more "mythology" to work with compared to many of the studio's other offerings. And with so much history also comes fan theories, one of which speculates that Andy's mom was Jessie the cowgirl's original owner. Pixar hasn't officially revealed whether or not this is true, but Tom Hanks, a.k.a. Woody himself, approves of this theory. He said:
Sounds like a fantastic off-story, a little bit of fan knowledge to me. And I'm sure the folks at Pixar have paid attention to it. I'm not saying such a flashback might happen in the fourth movie, but check it out. Good idea.
So not only does Tom Hanks support this clever plot twist that was postulated a few years ago, but he also believes that the folks over at Pixar have taken it into consideration. Of course, Hanks' comments to The Huffington Post are by no means confirmation that Andy's mom originally owning Jessie will become official canon, but like the actor said, keep your eyes and ears open when Toy Story 4 comes out.
In case you haven't seen Toy Story 2 in a long time, there was a flashback where Jessie explained how her owner, Emily, played with her as a child. But when Emily grew older, she lost interest in her toys, and Jessie was later tossed into a donations box and left on the side of the road. Emily was never clearly seen, and while Jessie has since become a loved toy once again after spending years as a collectible, having Andy's mom be Emily would be an interesting way to add more connectivity to the series. Remember, Andy's mom's has never been named.
As for how this theory was formulated, someone online noticed that Andy's red cowboy hat in Toy Story 2 not only looked like Jessie's, but it also had a faded mark where the white lace should have been. Emily wore that same kind of hat as a kid, only hers had the lace. Given how old Woody, Jessie and the other toys based off the Woody's Roundup TV show are, it's not impossible that Andy's mom, a.k.a Emily, grew up when that show was popular, and despite getting rid of Jessie, she kept the hat and gave it to her son. It should be pointed out, though, that because Andy's story concluded in Toy Story 3, that potentially decreases the chances of her appearing in Toy Story 4. But if the fourth installment does manage to validate this theory, at least we know Tom Hanks is on board for the twist.
Whether or not Andy's mom is actually Emily, the Toy Story saga will continue when Toy Story 4 is released in theaters on June 21, 2019.
