Preview:
- Moviefone attended a special sneak peek event for Netflix’s ‘In Your Dreams’
- The event also included an in-person Q&A with Director Alex Woo and actor Craig Robinson
- ‘In Your Dreams’ explores what happens when your dreams don’t come true
On Thursday, June 5, in Hollywood, Netflix hosted an ‘In Your Dreams‘ sneak peek presentation to highlight the upcoming animated film. Director Alex Woo and Craig Robinson (voice of Baloney Tony) were there in person to share a couple of clips and participate in a detailed Q&A session, where they revealed the inspiration behind the movie and Baloney Tony.
‘In Your Dreams’ follows Stevie (Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) and her younger brother, Elliot (Elias Janssen), as they search for the Sandman (Omid Djalili), who has promised them that they can make their dreams come true. Cristin Milioti and Simu Liu provide the voices of Mom and Dad, respectively. The film will start streaming on Netflix on November 14, 2025.
Moviefone had the pleasure of attending the event, along with other members of the press.
Related Article: Next on Netflix Animation Preview Announces Upcoming Movies and TV Shows
Footage Description
Press were shown two clips from ‘In Your Dreams’ which Alex Woo introduced.
The first clip features Stevie and Elliot in the basement of a bookstore, where they discover an old book titled ‘The Legend of the Sandman: The Giver of Dreams’. When they arrive home after a teenage employee tells them that they are not allowed down there, Elliot reveals that he stole the book using slight of hand.
Stevie and Elliot read some of the book together, where it states the Sandman can make your dreams come true. Later that night, Elliot’s bed comes alive and the two end up on an adventure flying through the sky through it – think ‘Bedknobs and Broomsticks‘.
They both learn that whatever they can think of, appears in the dream, including a Rocket Mode button on the bed that Elliot pushes, sending them soaring faster and higher than before. The clip ends with them hearing the voice of the Sandman, telling them to find him to make their dreams come true.
The second clip finds Stevie in Breakfast Town, one of the favorite dreams where the townspeople are all walking, talking breakfast foods. When Elliot crashes her dream and declares he wants to help her find the Sandman, the two are distracted by a familiar smell.
Following it leads Elliot to discover his beloved stuffed animal Baloney Tony, who gets his name because Elliot stores his baloney inside of him, trapped behind a refridgerator. It is revealed that the reason he is there is because in the real world Stevie hid him back there, to get the smell out of the bedroom they share.
Footage Reaction
Both ‘In Your Dreams’ clips offer several laugh-out-loud moments, but also prove that this movie is going to be filled with a lot of heart. Stevie is easily annoyed by her little brother, which anyone with a sibling will be able to relate to.
The kids are off to find the Sandman to make their dreams come true. Elliot’s dreams are that of a normal young kid, while Stevie staring longingly at a photo of her family during happier times insinuates that hers is much deeper than that.
Just getting a couple of minutes of Baloney Tony was enough to know that viewers are going to fall in love with him instantly. Robinson brilliantly voices the character, knowing exactly when to hit the comedic beats. The animation is stunning, as well.
Q&A Highlights From Alex Woo
Alex Woo makes his directorial debut with ‘In Your Dreams’. During the Q&A he explained why an animated dream movie is difficult to pull off.
‘A dream movie in the animated space has been a white whale. I think every animation studio in the world has had a dream movie in development at some point over the last couple of decades, but none of them have ever been made because I think nobody could figure out how to give a dream movie stakes. When we started our company and we were dreaming up different movie ideas, when we cracked it, we were like, ‘Oh my gosh, we’ve got to make this really quickly, otherwise somebody else is going to figure it out before us.”’
Alex Woo went on to detail how he wanted to make a movie that explores what happens when your dreams don’t come true.
“I grew up on movies that told me that if I wished hard enough, if I wanted something badly enough, that my dreams could come true. And as I grew up, I realized, well, sometimes that’s true, but sometimes it’s not. And I really wanted to make a movie that explores the question of, what do you do when your dreams actually don’t come true? How do you find hope? How do you keep moving forward in life? How do you find a way through? So that was sort of the big inspiration for me for this movie, and that’s why I wanted to so desperately make it.”
He then talked about how his relationship with his brother helped to inspire ‘In Your Dreams’.
“I have a little brother and Elliot is very much based on him. I’m very much Stevie, and me and my brother, we’ve had our epic battles throughout our childhood. I’m the perfectionistic, overbearing older sibling. He’s the carefree, fun-loving, charming little brother. I think a lot of this movie was me trying to understand and appreciate him and his unique perspective and take on life. One of my good friends, who knows me a little too well, saw the movie, and he said, ‘You know this film is just a really circuitous way of you telling your brother that you love him.’ And I was like, ‘I guess?’ Maybe making movies is easier than dealing with your feelings.”
Alex Woo also gives Netflix credit for taking a chance on an original film like ‘In Your Dreams’.
“I really got to give it up to Netflix for making an original. It’s such a bold statement and it’s really showing leadership in the industry because a lot of studios are just doing IP plays, sequels, video game adaptations, and those things are great but, it’s nice to have an original story every now and then.”
He teases that there are lots of Easter eggs and film homages to look out for in ‘In Your Dreams’, but he will not give them away.
“One of my favorite movies in the world is ‘Back to the Future‘, and that song by The Chordettes is used in that movie. So there’s a secret homage to that film for me, with the Sandman in that song…. Our studio’s first show was ‘Go! Go! Cory Carson’, which is a preschool show on Netflix. We love that show. I’m really proud of it. We put a bunch of ‘Go! Go! Cory Carson’ Easter eggs in the film. You can keep an eye out for those. There are homages to other films that I love, just as a filmmaker, but I’m not going to give them away. You’ll just have to figure it out for yourself.”
Q&A Highlights From Craig Robinson
Craig Robinson discussed what it was about Baloney Tony and ‘In Your Dreams’ that drew him to want to be a part of it.
“This script touches all of us, right? Everybody dreams, and if you don’t, you daydream. We all dream about dreaming. So it was just to be a part of something real. Tony was just so funny and silly. And I could see me as this crazy stuffed animal for some reason.”
He explains how his relationship with his siblings helped him craft the voice of Tony Baloney.
f8TuOMvp33EmkFFGRx31y1“It was such a collaboration of jokes and improvising in the moment. I would say something and it would be ‘Oh, Craig, say that, okay, do it like this.’ It was ongoing, it was so much fun. And also it is a love letter to our brothers and sisters, because I have a younger brother and an older sister. So that was all real. My brother and I are relentless in teasing our sister, with all love and faith, but the text messages, you can’t misspell a word in our text, it’s over, you know what I’m saying? ‘Really, I never heard that word before.’ So it’s all there.”
What is the plot of ‘In Your Dreams’?
A girl named Stevie (Jolie Hoang-Rappaport) and her brother named Elliot (Elias Janssen) magically travel into the world of dreams to find The Sandman (Omid Djalili), who would grant their wish of saving their parents’ (Simu Liu and Cristin Milioti) marriage.
Who is in the cast of ‘In Your Dreams’?
- Simu Liu as Dad
- Craig Robinson as Baloney Tony
- Cristin Milioti as Mom
- Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Stevie
- Elias Janssen as Elliot
- Gia Carides as Nightmara
- Omid Djalili as Sandman
- SungWon Cho as Chad
- Zachary Noah Piser as Joon Bae / Polly
List of Craig Robinson Movies and TV Shows:
- ‘The Office‘ (2005 – 2013)
- ‘Pineapple Express‘ (2008)
- ‘Hot Tub Time Machine‘ (2010)
- ‘This Is The End‘ (2013)
- ‘Hot Tub Time Machine 2‘ (2015)
- ‘Sausage Party‘ (2016)
- ‘Ghosted‘ (2017 – 2018)
- ‘Dolemite Is My Name‘ (2019)
- ‘The Bad Guys‘ (2022)
- ‘Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie‘ (2024)
- ‘The Bad Guys 2‘ (2025)
- ‘In Your Dreams‘ (2025)
