Why Lightyear instead of Toy Story 5? Will it give a boost to Toy Story Franchise?

All the previous Toy Story movies are well-known for their perfect endings. Toy Story 5 is still not officially confirmed, but we know that Pixar currently has "Turning Red" and "Lightyear" from the Toy Story franchise, which are set for release in 2022, while an untitled film is set to hit theaters in 2023.

The spin-off film Lightyear will tell the in-universe origin of Buzz Lightyear's character. Buzz Lightyear is a fictional character of the Toy Story franchise. He is a toy Space Ranger superhero according to the movies and an action figure in the franchise. Along with his friend, Sheriff Woody, he is one of the two main characters in all four of the Toy Story animated movies.

However, the movie will give a boost to Toy Story Franchise. Now the question is why Pixar is making Lightyear instead of Toy Story 5.

The franchise consists mainly of four CGI animated films: Toy Story (1995), Toy Story 2 (1999), Toy Story 3 (2010), and Toy Story 4 (2019). The franchise is based on the anthropomorphic concept that all toys, unknown to humans, are secretly alive. All the films focus on a diverse group of toys that feature a classic cowboy doll named Sheriff Woody and a modern spaceman action figure named Buzz Lightyear, principally voiced by Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. The group unexpectedly embarks on adventures that challenge and change them.

In the latest film of 2019, i.e. Toy Story 4, mostly the character chooses their happiness. The previous films focus on Woody’s relationships and interactions with his owners and the other toys, all of which had a perfect ending, with no cliffhangers. But this time, they may focus on a character’s life.

While co-directing Dory with Andrew Stanton, Angus MacLane pitched him the idea of making a Buzz Lightyear film.

An aspect of the Toy Story films that Lightyear explores is Buzz's disagreement over the nature of reality, which, coupled with his heroic ideals, made an amalgam of sci-fi clichés that MacLane intended to make more than just a punch line.

Buzz Lightyear's name was in honor of Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, the second person to walk on the Moon. According to Pixar producers, the character was provisionally named Lunar Larry, but it sounded "too wacky", so while trying to rechristen him, they went through "some space terms and the word light-year came up." They also found the coolest astronaut name - Buzz Aldrin.

This time, Chris Evans will voice the human Buzz Lightyear, instead of Tim Allen. Buzz Lightyear's story came to an end with the conclusion of Toy Story 4, but it looks like the upcoming movie will portray a new story of the real Space Ranger.

The upcoming American 3D computer-animated film Lightyear is scheduled for release on June 17, 2022.

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