‘Toy Story’ Returning to Theaters For Its 30th (!) Anniversary

As a devoted fan, I can’t help but acknowledge the passing of time. It’s been quite some time since the original Toy Story graced our screens in theaters. I’m in awe of how Pixar has evolved over the decades, transforming a single movie into an illustrious franchise that includes no less than three sequels and another one on the horizon.

However, it seems that “Toy Story” is three decades old. This contradicts the belief that such a film, or in my case, could be that aged.

Ah, it’s a fact! Back in 1995, on November 22 to be precise, the world was introduced to the magic of Toy Story. This fall, we’ll be celebrating its 30th anniversary! In honor of this milestone, Disney and Pixar are bringing back the original movie to theaters later this month. I can hardly wait!

In the movie “Toy Story,” directed by John Lasseter, Tom Hanks voices Woody and Tim Allen gives life to Buzz Lightyear. When Andy receives a new Buzz Lightyear action figure for his birthday, it makes Woody, who was once the main toy among all of Andy’s playthings, feel insecure. In an attempt to get rid of the newcomer, Woody and Buzz end up getting lost and must collaborate to find their way back to Andy. (Although I can hardly imagine anyone needing a summary of “Toy Story” these days, one never knows!)

In 1995, the groundbreaking film “Toy Story” was released as the first computer-animated feature movie ever made. It went on to earn $363 million globally, standing second only to “Die Hard With a Vengeance” in box office sales for that year. The success of this film significantly boosted Pixar’s reputation, and its subsequent financial and creative triumph with “Toy Story 2” in 1999 further solidified its status.

marking its 30-year milestone, the beloved film “Toy Story” hits the big screen once more on September 12. You can grab your tickets right away! Meanwhile, work continues on “Toy Story 5,” which is set to premiere in theaters on June 19, 2026.

The 10 Wildest Pixar Theories That Might Be True

1. All Pixar Movies Exist in One Timeline

The central concept of Negroni’s theory proposes that all Pixar films are interconnected within a single timeline, an alternate reality where magic, monsters, and artificial intelligence dominate. This universe is initiated by the meteor miss in “The Good Dinosaur,” depicting dinosaur-human coexistence, implying that animals other than humans also developed intelligence. The enchantment presented in “Brave” and the AI depicted later in “Cars” create a world driven entirely by emotions as portrayed in films like “Inside Out” and “Turning Red.” These emotions influence animal populations seen in movies such as “Finding Nemo,” “Ratatouille,” and even shape the energy sources powering consumer goods like the toys from “Toy Story.”

As humans decline (as shown in “Coco” and “Soul”), they depart Earth, paving the way for sentient vehicles and robots, as seen in “WALL-E,” to temporarily rule. Eventually, humans return to find a planet where even insects in “A Bug’s Life” mimic human behavior.

In the distant future, these intelligent animals have evolved into the monstrous creatures from “Monsters, Inc.” that traverse time through doors, extracting emotional energy from humanity. Although this theory is not factual and has been disproven by Pixar creatives on numerous occasions, it remains a fascinating thought exercise.

2. Boo From Monsters Inc. Is the Witch From Brave

An intriguing aspect of Negroni’s theory centers around Boo, the young girl from Monsters, Inc. After spending considerable time traversing the magical doors in Monstropolis, she gains the ability to travel through time. With her own magical abilities, she searches for Sulley as an adult but never finds him. Later, she sends herself back in time to medieval Scotland, as depicted in Brave. She spends decades there, growing old and transforming into the witch whom Merida encounters in the forest. The witch conceals her powers by crafting wooden figurines (similar to the enchanted doors) and carving items unrecognizable to a Highland witch (such as that familiar Pizza Planet truck). She also appears to be fascinated with bears, resembling Sulley in appearance.

3. Supers in The Incredibles Have Different Powers When They’re Babies

In the animated film, “The Incredibles,” the characters resemble classic comic book superheroes, each possessing unique abilities that set them apart: Mr. Incredible is incredibly strong, Elastigirl can stretch, Frozone controls ice, Dash runs at supersonic speeds, and so on. The exception is Jack-Jack, who appears to have a vast array of powers, including fire manipulation, cloning, interdimensional travel, and even transforming into a little demon. Fans speculated that he was an alien or a precursor to the superheroes before puberty. However, director Brad Bird clarified that Jack-Jack’s powers are linked to his role in the Parr family, as a baby, he is still finding his place and personality, and only one power will persist when he grows up, while the others will fade away.

4. Syndrome From The Incredibles Invented the AI of Cars

Machine intelligence plays a crucial role in numerous Pixar films, and if the theory of time travel were accurate, we’d have to trace the origin of the AI threat. This source could very well be Syndrome, the ingenious antagonist from The Incredibles, who utilized his intellect to construct a combat machine capable of learning and evolving. Such intelligence would seem ideally suited for vehicles and trash-processing robots to conquer an entire planet. Although the Omnidroid was destroyed at the end of The Incredibles, it demonstrated remarkable problem-solving skills, eventually recognizing Syndrome as a threat and turning against its creator. This technology would undoubtedly have the capacity to survive long enough to upload into other machines and propagate its hatred for its human creators.

5. The Cars in Cars Stole Their Drivers’ Identities

In discussing the concept of self-aware machines, one might wonder about the sentient cars in the movie “Cars”. If we consider a world populated by these vehicles, it implies that there were once human drivers who used them. However, something catastrophic seems to have happened to the humans, leaving behind a planet littered with highways, racing tracks, and abandoned automobiles.

The “Cars” trilogy unfolds in a world where the once-thriving human population has perished, but their legacy lives on through the infrastructure they left behind. An intriguing perspective comes from Jay Ward, the creative director of the series. He suggests that eventually, cars might evolve to operate without human passengers and could even adopt the personality traits of the last person who drove them.

One peculiar aspect in this universe is that car doors do not open. This is because, as humorously pointed out, if they did, their internal mechanisms would spill out like an organism’s organs!

6. The Megacorporation From WALL-E Was Taking Over the World as Far Back as Toy Story 3

In WALL-E, the true antagonist can be seen as excessive consumerism driven by corporations like Buy n Large (BnL). This corporation, which spans various industries such as retail, fast food, pharmaceuticals, and even governance, is implied to have contributed significantly to Earth’s uninhabitability due to overconsumption of resources. The omnipresence of the BnL logo, a prominent white lettering on red and blue circles, hints at their rise to power, with early appearances in the “timeline” on Car Toons billboards and batteries from Toy Story 3 and 4. This suggests that BnL’s influence was already growing strong before WALL-E began.

7. The Old Lady at the Beginning of Ratatouille Is Anton Ego’s Mother

The theory proposed here isn’t as far-fetched as some others. The movie Ratatouille begins with a typical action sequence for Pixar films, showing Remy the rat fleeing from an old woman with a shotgun, who he had been living with in her house and learning to cook by watching TV shows. While it’s heartwarming (until the shotgun part), some believe this old woman played a bigger role in the story than simply providing a home for Remy and his friends. This theory suggests that Remy was actually residing in Anton Ego’s mother’s house all along, learning to make the exact dishes she used to prepare for her son. This is hinted at when Anton Ego experiences a flashback of his mother preparing ratatouille, which closely resembles the kitchen items and furniture seen in the old woman’s house at the start of the movie.

8. Up Exists as a Movie in Inside Out

In simpler terms, the movie “Inside Out” transforms the abstract idea of the human mind into a bustling office setting where different departments operate smoothly, except during emergencies. The film uses small, manipulable orbs representing memories, which playback like movies when interacted with. For a brief moment in one memory, you can see another Pixar movie called “Up”, specifically the heart-wrenching prologue featuring Carl and Ellie. This scene, undeniably emotional for many, including Riley and us, hints at the existence of “Up” within the universe of “Inside Out”. However, it’s more likely that this scene was included as a tribute to director Pete Docter, who also worked on “Up”.

9. Bing Bong From Inside Out is a Monster from Monstropolis

In another interpretation related to “Inside Out”, there’s a theory about Bing Bong, Riley’s fluffy, elephant-like imaginary friend. This friendly character is pink, has a long trunk, and wears a little clown suit. He introduces himself as a comedian, making an appearance in Riley’s childhood to bring joy and laughter into her life. Interestingly enough, laughter plays a significant role in another film – “Monsters, Inc.”. According to this theory, Bing Bong might not be just an imaginary friend but rather a monster from Monstropolis who visited Riley when the monsters discovered that laughter is a far more potent energy source than screams. Since Riley was unaware of monsters, she assumed he was her imagination. In “Inside Out”, Bing Bong represents Riley’s memory of him. For those who mourned his heartbreaking demise, worry not: the genuine Bing Bong continues to live and flourish in the monster world.

By simplifying some sentences and changing their structure slightly, I aimed to maintain the original meaning while making it more accessible and engaging for readers.

10. Onward Takes Place on a Different Planet

In the Pixar timeline theory, the movie “Onward” presents an intriguing question. How do its fantasy creatures fit into the technological advancement of Earth, as depicted in the theory? One possible explanation is that “Onward” happens far into the future of humanity. Instead of assuming only one spaceship departed Earth before ecological collapse, as shown in “WALL-E”, what if another one existed? This second spacecraft might have landed on a planet habitable for humans but possessing magical properties that led to their evolution into creatures resembling those from fairy tales. The presence of two moons in the sky in “Onward” could imply that it is set on a different world, which could be another planet in a distinct solar system.

2025-09-02 21:06