Inside Out 2 Writer Addresses Rumors of Bing Bong's Return

No word yet on whether the imaginary friend could somehow find his way back from the void.

By Russ Burlingame

In the latest issue of Empire magazine, Inside Out 2 co-screenwriter Dave Holstein steered clear of a question about Bing Bong (Richard Kind), Riley's imaginary friend from the first movie. The character had one of Pixar's most memorable "death" scenes when he sacrificed himself in the first Inside Out, but fans have been wondering if the sequel might somehow bring him back. After all, he's a figment of Riley's imagination, so unless she somehow forgot about him completely, it seems like he could somehow come back.

Fans have been examining the trailers and scenes from the movie to look for clues as to whether Bing Bong might come back, and some think they've found some things. Holstein didn't want to commit either way, and when he was asked about the idea of bringing back Bing Bong, he declined. 

"I'll leave that open ended," Holstein said (per Hollywood Handle).

Obviously, that's a nothingburger of a comment -- but at the same time, it wouldn't be hard to openly deny that a character already known to be dead was showing up in the movie. That's bound to keep audiences talking for at least another week or two. Tickets are now on sale for the movie, which is set to hit theaters next month.

Here's the official synopsis for Inside Out 2: Disney and Pixar's Inside Out 2 returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions! Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who've long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren't sure how to feel when Anxiety shows up. And it looks like she's not alone.

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Maya Hawke lends her voice to Anxiety, alongside Amy Poehler as the voice of Joy. The voice cast also includes Lewis Black, Phyllis Smith, Tony Hale, Liza Lapira, Ayo Edebiri, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Paul Walter Hauser, Kensington Tallman, Lilimar, Diane Lane, Kyle MacLachlan, Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green, Grace Lu and Yvette Nicole Brown. Directed by Kelsey Mann and produced by Mark Nielsen with a screenplay by Meg LeFauve and Dave Holstein, Inside Out 2 features a score by Andrea Datzman.

Inside Out 2 is set to debut in theaters on June 14.

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