The delightful Toy Story crew of Woody, Buzz, Jessie, and more are making a return to the big screen with Toy Story 5, but they will be introducing some new friends to the party. One of those new friends is set to be played by Conan O’Brien, and the character will be a key piece in the film’s theme of analog toys in a world full of digital devices. Now we have our first look at O’Brien’s new character, and you can check it out below.
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O’Brien will be voicing the character of an electronic toy named Smarty Pants, and thanks to Destination 23, fans got their first look at the adorable character, which you can check out in the image below (via Boardwalk Times). We don’t have the footage yet of Smarty Pants in action, but knowing O’Brien, Smarty Pants is likely to have the comedian’s sarcastic wit in spades.
What We Know About Toy Story 5
Smarty Pants will likely be one of several new characters in Toy Story 5, and while we wait to learn more about the rest of the cast, we do know that the film will bring back series icons like Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and Jessie, who is going to be a more central character this time around.
The overall theme of the film is the evolution of toys and how traditional toys fare against the increased presence of digital and electronic toys. There was a semblance of this conflict in the original Toy Story when Woody had to adapt to the more high-tech Buzz Lightyear, and it will be interesting to see how Buzz now adapts to being more in Woody’s position as tablets and interactive toys take more precedence in the toy box, as it were.
Speaking of Buzz, it’s also been rumored that the toys will have to face a legion of Buzz Lightyear action figures for some reason, so that will only make things that much more chaotic for our favorite crew.
Toy Story 4 ended with Woody staying with Bo Peep, but Woody and Buzz will be reunited in the sequel, and that seems to also be tied to what is being described as an “unbelievable” opening sequence by Tim Allen.
A True Smarty Pants
How Smarty Pants fits into all this remains to be seen, but O’Brien did reveal how excited he was to play the character. That said, he did reveal that Smarty Pants wasn’t his first choice. On Instagram, O’Brien said, โInitially, I wanted the role of Woody, and they told me that they already promised that to Tom Hanks. And I was like, โYou kind of been there and done that. You know, youโre in a bit of a rut, donโt you think?โ And they said, No, itโs Tom Hanks. Itโs his role.”
“So I said, โOk, how about Buzz Lightyear?โ And I said, โLet me guess, Tim Allen.โ And they were like, โYeah, Tim Allen.โ And I went, โGuys, you gotta think outside the box.’ But anyway, then they showed me this new character, Smarty Pants. Itโs the best character of them all,” O’Brien said. “I far prefer this character. I donโt even wanna play Woody or Buzz anymore, even if they beg me. Iโm Smarty Pants. I love this!โ
Toy Story 5 will land in theaters on June 18th, 2026.
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