Why Buzz Lightyear Isn't A Toy In Pixar's Toy Story Prequel Movie
Disney has a long list of animated projects lined up for the near future, and among those is Lightyear, set within the universe of Toy Story but without the title character being a toy – and here’s why. The world of animation continues to be very popular with viewers of all ages, and the studio that still dominates this area is Disney. The Mouse House is always busy working on new animated stories – either original, sequels, prequels, or adaptations of other works – and among the many movies coming up in 2022 is Lightyear.
Directed by Angus MacLane (co-director of Finding Dory and director of different Pixar shorts), Lightyear will follow young test pilot Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Chris Evans) and his journey to become the Space Ranger everyone now knows so well, which led him to be so popular he even got his own toy. Lightyear was announced as part of Disney’s upcoming animated projects in December 2020, and even though it’s scheduled for a June 17, 2022 release, the studio has already released the first teaser trailer, giving the audience a taste of the tone of this sci-fi adventure, but it also showed how different it will be from the Buzz Lightyear everyone knows thanks to Toy Story.
When Lightyear was announced, there was some confusion over who exactly was the lead of the story and how it connects with Pixar’s classic Toy Story, and the teaser trailer added to that confusion by showing Buzz as a real person rather than a toy. Lightyear is set within the universe of Toy Story but it doesn’t tell the backstory of the Buzz Lightyear toy that went on to become Woody’s best friend, and instead, it’s all about the character who inspired the manufacturing of the toy.
Speaking to EW, MacLane explained that Lightyear would be a movie that “maybe Andy would have seen, that would have made him want a Buzz Lightyear figure” but that doesn't mean you should expect to see Andy at the end of the movie eating popcorn and enjoying the fun. MacLane added that Lightyear is “its own thing” and clarified it’s all about the character as a space ranger, not the toy that shook things up in Andy’s room in Toy Story. The Toy Story franchise established that the Buzz Lightyear toy is based on an in-universe sci-fi character, who served as the captain of the Universe Protection Unit of the Space Ranger Corps, and his biggest enemy was Emperor Zurg. Buzz Lightyear, then, won’t be a toy in Lightyear because this is the story of the man who inspired the toy that has now become part of pop culture.
Of course, there will be many references to the toy version of Buzz through Lightyear, most notably the suit, which as seen in the teaser trailer, was recreated to perfection for the toy. Lightyear will surely answer some of the questions the audience might have about the origin of Buzz Lightyear, and will expand the universe of Toy Story in a very different but exciting way.