Why a ‘Toy Story’ TV Series Would Work Better Than Another Movie

Do we really need another ‘Toy Story’ movie, or would a TV show be a better idea?

With the announcement of a brand-new Toy Story movie now in the works at Pixar Studios, fans seem to be rather divided on how they’ve been reacting to the news. While some have expressed excitement at getting to see their favorite toy characters setting off on a new feature-length adventure, others seem to be a lot more skeptical about the idea. When Toy Story 3 (directed by Lee Unkrich) was released in 2010, it was seen as the perfect conclusion to the Toy Story series as a whole, but when the fourth movie (directed by Josh Cooley) came out in 2019, many fans saw it as a needless attempt at milking a franchise that already had a proper ending. However, the film clearly did financially and critically well enough to warrant yet another sequel. Although, there is a chance that an animated television series based on the Toy Story movies could work just as well as another movie, if not better.

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Over the past couple of years, Pixar has been producing a number of animated series based on their previous films. The first was Monsters at Work (2021), based on the 2001 film Monsters Inc. (directed by Pete Docter, Unkrich, and David Silverman) and its 2013 sequel Monsters University (directed by Dan Scanlon). Next was Dug Days (2021), based on the 2009 film Up (Docter and Bob Peterson), which starred the film’s lovable dog character Dug (voice of Peterson) in a series smaller, self-contained comedic adventures. And most recently was Cars On The Road (2022), based on the popular Cars franchise, which featured the two starring characters Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) and Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) on a cross-country road trip. Each one of these spin-off series has been met with positive reception, so it only makes sense that a spin-off based on Pixar’s oldest and, arguably, most beloved franchise would be highly successful as well.

What Would the Show Be About?

Prior to the release of Toy Story 4, Pixar created three successful animated Toy Story short films under the collective name of Toy Story Toons, including Hawaiian Vacation (2011), Small Fry (2011), and Partysaurus Rex (2012). They also released two half-hour long TV specials, Toy Story of Terror (2013) and Toy Story That Time Forgot (2014). Each one of these had the toys going on smaller, more light-hearted adventures, which could be an ideal format for a potential TV series. Some of them even expanded on the lives of some of the different types of toys that hadn’t been seen before, like fast food toys in Small Fry and bathtub toys in Partysaurus Rex.

This wouldn’t even be the first time that Disney produced a TV series based on a Toy Story property. Many fans who grew up in the early 2000s still recall watching Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (2000) on Disney’s One Saturday Morning block on ABC. There was also the miniseries called Forky Asks a Question, which debuted on Disney+ in 2019 and featured the character Forky learning about different subjects from each of the other toys. If Pixar did decide to produce another spinoff series for Toy Story revolving around one specific character, they still have a whole plethora of characters to choose from.

Perhaps one of the more obvious routes for a TV series would be to have it pick up right where Toy Story 4 left off. The movie ends with Woody (Tom Hanks) going off with Bo Peep (Annie Potts) and his new friends while saying goodbye to all of his old friends and leaving Jessie (Joan Cusack) as the new sheriff. A new series could follow the adventures of Woody and his new gang as they travel around helping toys find owners, while simultaneously checking back in with the toys still in Bonnie’s house.

There is still much about the world of Toy Story left to be explored. So many different possibilities for new adventures and new characters to be introduced. Even if those adventures turn out to be smaller in scale, Disney and Pixar’s past treatment of this beloved franchise proves that they could still be widely entertaining. Fans don’t have to see their favorite toys embark on another epic life-changing journey to get the best out of the series. Sometimes, they just want to see toys doing what toys do best: make people smile.