When Toy Story 3 came to an end in 2010, it felt like the beloved Pixar franchise had been given the perfect finale. Andy said goodbye to Buzz, Woody, and the rest of his favorite toys, giving them to a young girl named Bonnie so that they could continue making a kid happy. The very last scene showed Andy driving off into the sunset and Woody, surrounded by his best friends, saying, “So long, partner.” It was best ending that any of the fans could have hoped for. So why did Pixar decide to keep it going?
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It was certainly a surprise to hear that Toy Story 4 had been given the green light by Pixar. Yes, the franchise is a guaranteed money-maker, and no studio is going to turn down money. It seemed like continuing the series after such a wonderful finale was nothing more than a cash grab. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
While visiting Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, California, ComicBook.com got the chance to hear from the director and producers of Toy Story 4, and they were directly asked why they chose to move forward with a fourth installment. To them, it was all because there was still another story left to tell.
“That’s the question of all questions,” said director Josh Cooley. “We realized, we love the end of Toy Story 3. It ends Woody and Andy’s story perfectly. We realize there is more story to tell to continue Woody’s story and once we started going down that path and realizing oh there is more to tell for Woody, we just kept going and we hit upon something that’s worth telling.”
According to Mark Neilsen, a lot of that new story for Woody has to do with the return of Bo Peep, who has been missing since Toy Story 2 in 1999.
“The idea of Bo Peep also is so intriguing to us,” Neilsen added. “This movie has been kind of codenamed Peep Here Within the Walls, for the whole four years we’ve been making it. ‘Cause we knew she was such an important character in this one and the idea of them coming back together after not seeing each other for nine year, and just what’s become of her was something we thought was worth exploring.”
While we may not have wanted to “ruin” the ending of Toy Story 3, it sounds like this new chapter will live up to all of the lofty standards of its predecessor, and that’s certainly something worth celebrating.
Toy Story 4 hits theaters on June 21st.
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