‘Toy Story 5’ Plot Twist Set To Disappoint Parents

Parents who were excited about the villain of the next “Toy Story” franchise film are about to be disappointed. Film director Andrew Stanton explained during a recent interview that the rumors aren’t technically true.

The teaser trailer, released in November, indicated that the villain this time around is a new tablet called “Lilypad,” which steals main character Bonnie’s attention as she forgoes playing to scroll. This recognizable storyline immediately resonated with parents and helped justify the idea of yet another “Toy Story” sequel.

“[Lilypad] is [the villain] to the toys because they’re understandably intimidated,” Stanton told Variety while clarifying the iPad stand-in is not meant to be the overall bad guy. 

“She’s just the next phase in Bonnie’s life. She’s built like a toy in the sense that she wants to help the kid go forward, but she’s got very different skills and zero experience, whereas Jessie has nothing but experience and is probably unprepared for what to do.”

Co-director McKenna Harris told the outlet that several “Toy Story 5” creators pushed to turn Lilypad into a true villain, but that idea was ultimately shot down.

“Lots of people at the studio wanted her to be a villain, and it was so hard to strike the balance because I think we all come in with such loaded emotions towards devices. At the end of the day, it never made sense,” she said.  

Harris added that the filmmakers tried to make the narrative realistic, which in this case meant learning to coexist with tech. “We’re not getting rid of these devices, no matter how hard we try. I’m always going to have my phone. I’m probably going to be partially addicted to it. So it felt right for the toys to have to grapple with that nuance.”

While the minds behind “Toy Story 5” agree that tech is here to stay, they also revealed that the film relied on traditional animation techniques instead of straight AI.

“We’ve had machine learning since the beginning of Pixar as far as figuring things out for you occasionally, but it’s always been to make the tools work better. I have no interest in doing anything but working smarter, faster with another artist,” Stanton said.

Harris agreed, telling Variety, “Pixar is a technology company first, and so things are changing. Pixar is figuring out how to change along with it. But as far as our process on ‘Toy Story 5’ went, we had to figure it out ourselves, mainly because ultimately, what you’re seeing on screen is the work of a lot of awesome artists.”

The voice cast for “Toy Story 5” includes Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, and Joan Cusack, who return to their roles of Woody, Buzz, and Jessie. Greta Lee voices Lilypad.

The official synopsis says, “The toys are back and this time, Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Jessie and the rest of the gang’s jobs are challenged when they come face-to-face with Lilypad (voice of Greta Lee), a brand-new tablet device that arrives with her own disruptive ideas about what is best for their kid, Bonnie. Will playtime ever be the same?”

The full trailer was released on February 19. “Toy Story 5” hits theaters June 19.