Toy Story 4 Director Explains Why This Ending Will Stick

The tear-jerking ending to Toy Story 3 was thought to be the perfect cap to a beloved franchise when it was released back in 2010, as it saw Buzz and Woody finally say goodbye to Andy and move onto their next adventure in life. With that ending in mind, it came as a major surprise to fans everywhere when Disney and Pixar announced Toy Story 4. The movie still turned out great, as many expected, with yet another ending that feels like it should wrap the story up for good. Unlike the third movie, it looks like the conclusion of Toy Story 4 is actually going to stick.

Throughout the press tour for Toy Story 4, the creative team behind the film seemed very set on this being the end of the franchise, often noting that they hadn’t had any discussions about a fifth installment. So why is this ending so much more final than that of Toy Story 3?

According to director Josh Cooley, it’s all about how this film completes the saga of Woody and Buzz as friends. The franchise started with them meeting one another, and it now ends with them saying goodbye as best friends and brothers. Cooley spoke to ComicBook.com ahead of the Toy Story 4 home release and explained why this is actually the end.

“Well, I think that the end of 3, which I love, and first did not see a fourth film, but it’s the end of Woody’s arc with Andy,” Cooley explained. “It’s the completion of his being able to let go of Andy, but there is more to Woody. He’s been such a loyal toy, like so good to the point where he had blinders on, and so this was like, can we show him that everything that he has feared for entire quadrilogy is actually, Bo is that. Bo has become that lost toy that he was freaking out about in the first film and now he’s able to open his eyes and go like, ‘Wow, there is a bigger world out there. I can basically go from taking care of one kid in a bedroom to taking care of multiple kids everywhere.’ So that felt like a big change and a completion of his arc.”

The ending of Toy Story 4 certainly does just that, as Woody decides to go on the road with Bo Peep rather than going back to Bonnie’s room with the others. He has embraced his new stage of life, something that we never really thought Woody would be able to do.

What did you think of the ending of Toy Story 4? Let us know in the comments!

Toy Story 4 is now available for purchase on Digital HD. It arrives on Blu-ray October 8th.