Toy Story 5 is now in production, and it seems that the villain this time is going to be an existential one. Director Andrew Stanton acknowledged Quentin Tarantino’s criticism and spoke extensively on the storyline for Toy Story 5 in an interview with Empire Online.
The director mentioned that Toy Story 5 will simply not be making “technology” the villain because kids are not playing with toys anymore. Instead, the villain would be more of an existential crisis, and the relevance of toys in a world that is increasingly relying on technology for entertainment.
Nobody’s really playing with toys anymore. Technology has changed everybody’s lives, but we’re asking what that means for us — and to our kids. We can’t just get away with making tech the villain.
This goes famously well with Quentin Tarantino’s criticism of Toy Story 4 and how he was already satisfied with the ending provided by Toy Story 3.
Quentin Tarantino Only Considers Two Trilogies as The Best
Well, it is a bit weird to see toys and Sergio Leone’s Dollars trilogy side-by-side. However, these are the only two trilogies that Quentin Tarantino has ever considered as the best of the best.
During an interview on Bill Maher’s Club Random podcast, the Ingourious Basterds director revealed that he hasn’t watched Toy Story 4, because for him, the story had a satisfying end with the third film.
I don’t watch all the animated movies and stuff, but I’m a big fan of the ‘Toy Story’ trilogy. In the case of ‘Toy Story,’ the third one is just magnificent. It’s one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. And if you’ve seen the other two, it’s just devastating.
He continued,
But the thing is, then three years later or something, they did a fourth. I have no desire to see it. You literally ended the story as perfect as you could, so no, I don’t care if it’s good. I’m done.
Well, with the existential villain in Toy Story 5, there are chances that the franchise might continue the path of success and teach good morals instead of just being a fight between tech vs. nostalgia.
How Toy Story 5 Changes the Classic Technology-Villain Trope
A still from Toy Story 4 | Credit: Pixar Studios
We have seen it before. The Incredibles 2 had the Screenslaver, Avengers: Age of Ultron, M3GAN, and more. The more humans progress in technology, the less are the chances of their survival.
However, with Toy Story 5 and Andrew Stanton’s remarks, it seems that there would be no physical villain in Toy Story 5. Rather, it would probably be Woody, Buzz, and the rest of the Toys trying to get noticed and picked up by their owners again, who are too busy on their phones.
Naturally, Toy Story 5 subverts the classic technology-is-the-villain trope. Instead, it will probably focus on a metaphorical villain, where deep emotional thematic scenes and a storyline that will invoke the nostalgia and deeper themes of every adult going to watch the movie.
Do you think Toy Story 5 will live up to people’s expectations? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Toy Story 5 is scheduled to release on June 19, 2026 (USA).
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