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Tag: john ratzenberger

  • ‘Toy Story 5’ Adds Conan O’Brien to Cast

    Conan O'Brien hosts the live ABC telecast of the 97th Oscars® at the Dolby® Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 2, 2025. Credit/Provider: Trae Patton / The Academy; Copyright: ©A.M.P.A.S.
    Conan O’Brien hosts the live ABC telecast of the 97th Oscars® at the Dolby® Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday, March 2, 2025. Credit/Provider: Trae Patton / The Academy; Copyright: ©A.M.P.A.S.

    Preview:

    • Conan O’Brien has landed a voice role in ‘Toy Story 5.’
    • He’ll bring the character of Smarty Pants to life.
    • The new movie will see our heroes challenged by new technology.

    The ‘Toy Story’ movies have never exactly been short on star power, starting at the top with Tom Hanks and Tim Allen playing iconic duo Woody and Buzz Lightyear.

    For the fifth entry –– yes, Pixar, while still putting out original movies is still also happy to lean on its veteran franchises when the right idea strikes –– some new blood has been recruited.

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    Well, we say new… It’s perhaps a little tough to use that designator since Conan O’Brien (for it is he) has been working since the 1980s and has made a career largely as a comedy writer but also as a TV host for late night and a variety of other projects, including returning to host next year’s Academy Awards after a successful first time this past March.

    For ‘Toy Story 5,’ O’Brien will voice the role of a new character called Smarty Pants, who we can imagine will be a witty but probably troublesome type for our regulars to run up against.

    Disney announced O’Brien’s casting as part of the Consumer Products section of its Licensing Expo presentation on Monday. And the performer talked about landing the role on Instagram, joking that he’d hoped to play either Buzz or Woody, but is now convinced that Smarty Pants is the best role he could have won:

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    A post shared by Team Coco (@teamcoco)

     

    Andrew Stanton, the Pixar veteran who has been behind several of the studio’s biggest hits, is back to write and direct this new outing.

    Related Article: Ernie Hudson to Take Over as the Voice of Combat Carl for ‘Toy Story 5’

     

    What’s the story of ‘Toy Story 5’?

    (L to R) Woody (Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) in Pixar Animation Studios' 'Toy Story.'
    (L to R) Woody (Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) in Pixar Animation Studios’ ‘Toy Story.’

    In case you forgot (since it was released back in 2019), ‘Toy Story 4’ ended with Woody and Buzz parting ways when the former joined Bo Peep (Annie Potts) to live a life as a “lost toy,” free from the constraints of being owned by a child.

    Throughout the film, Woody struggled to find his place with Bonnie, as she no longer needed him as much as Andy did. Buzz, understanding Woody’s choice, assured him that Bonnie would be okay without him and supported Woody’s decision to start a new chapter.

    Meanwhile, Buzz stayed with Bonnie, continuing to live with Jessie, Rex (Wallace Shawn), Hamm (John Ratzenberger) and other toys, including the new addition of Forky (Tony Hale).

    Stanton revealed at the last D23 that the central conflict of the latest film will involve the toys grappling with staying relevant in the age of technology.

    The concept art revealed at the same event shows the toys looking sadly at their owner engrossed in a tablet, hinting at the emotional and humorous struggles they will face as they try to reclaim the child’s attention.

    And Tim Allen has also been talking about the new movie.

    This is what he told Collider:

    “It’s a very, very clever story. I don’t really believe it’s about the money. I’m sure they want it to be a success, but that’s not why they did it. Had they not come up with a brilliant script, they wouldn’t have done it. It’s really clever. It was really a struggle to get, and then maybe two hours in, I was doing Buzz. I’m so blessed to be Buzz Lightyear, to be honest. It’s gonna be fun. I think we’re a year out. I’ve gotten up to the third act. We’ll do the third act. And then, we’ll go back and clean it. And then, I’ll do it about five more times. It’s a really good story, guys. It’s really good.”

    Here’s what what he told news channel WIVB 4:

    “I can tell you that it’s a lot about Jessie,” he said. “Tom [Hanks] and I do — Woody and I — do realign. And there’s an unbelievable opening scene with Buzz Lightyears. I can give you that, but I can’t give you much more.”

    Who else is working on ‘Toy Story 5’?

    Ernie Hudson Jr. at the London photocall of Columbia Pictures' 'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' on March 21, 2024 in London, England. Photo by Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for Columbia Pictures.
    Ernie Hudson Jr. at the London photocall of Columbia Pictures’ ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ on March 21, 2024 in London, England. Photo by Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for Columbia Pictures.

    Few other details have been revealed about the new movie for either side of the camera.

    We do know that McKenna Harris, who has worked on several other Pixar titles in various capabilities, is co-directing the movie with Stanton, and the latter worked on the script.

    Beyond Allen and more recently Ernie Hudson (who inherits the role of Combat Carl from Carl Weathers), there has been no confirmation on the cast, but Hanks will naturally return and word on Jessie surely points to Joan Cusack already having recorded some material.

    We’d be shocked if most of the main voice cast –– at least those whose characters feature prominently –– wouldn’t be back.

    And there are reports of Anna Faris in an undisclosed role.

    When will ‘Toy Story 5’ be in theaters?

    Disney and Pixar’s latest entry in the ‘Toy Story’ franchise will be on screens on June 19th, 2026.

    'Toy Story 5'. Photo: Disney.
    ‘Toy Story 5’. Photo: Disney.

    List of Movies in the ‘Toy Story’ Franchise:

    Buy ‘Toy Story’ Movies On Amazon

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  • ‘Luck’ Trailer Takes Us into a New World

    John Lasseter was once the king of American animation – the genius storyteller and director who led Pixar to huge box office wins, Oscar success and massive popular acclaim with movies such as ‘Toy Story’ and ‘Cars’ and being anointed as the creative boss at both the Emeryville studio and Walt Disney Feature Animation.

    He was ousted from his position, though, after revelations about toxic and misogynistic behavior. Yet that situation didn’t seem to worry Skydance Animation, which hired him as its chief in 2019. And now he’s one of the main producers behind new Apple TV+ ‘toon movie ‘Luck’.

    The real driving force here, though, is director Peggy Holmes, who works from a script by Kiel Murray, Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger.

    ‘Luck’ is the story of Sam Greenfield (Eva Noblezada), who is convinced she’s the unluckiest person on the planet. She’s always late, things go wrong constantly around her and she never seems to catch a break.

    Then she discovers a mysterious, mystical lucky penny, which turns everything around for her… until she flushes it down a toilet. That leads to her meeting a talking black cat named Bob (Simon Pegg) who in turn accidentally gives her access to the Land of Luck, where on top everything runs smoothly and goes right, but bad luck is banished to the bottom.

    The Dragon (voiced by Jane Fonda), Bob (voiced by Simon Pegg) and Sam Greenfield (voiced by Eva Noblezada) in “Luck,” premiering globally on Apple TV+ on August 5, 2022.
    (L to R) The Dragon (voiced by Jane Fonda), Bob (voiced by Simon Pegg) and Sam Greenfield (voiced by Eva Noblezada) in “Luck,” premiering globally on Apple TV+ on August 5, 2022.

    “The tiniest amount of bad luck can shut down our entire operation,” cautions the CEO of Good Luck, a dragon who has the voice of Jane Fonda.

    Humans are strictly not allowed, so Sam’s presence of course causes all sorts of chaos. She’s looking to bring some luck back to her world, but when she severs the connection between good and bad luck… bad things happen.

    Now Sam and Bob must put things right, with the help of cheery leprechaun Gerry (Colin O’Donoghue), strict leprechaun leader The Captain (Whoopi Goldberg) and eccentric unicorn Jeff (Flula Borg), who has a thing for exercise routines.

    The likes of Lil Rel Howery, Maurice Irvin and Adelynn Spoon (plus former Pixar good luck voice charm John Ratzenberger) also star here.

    ‘Luck’ itself has not always had the best, well, luck, as it lost the services of Emma Thompson back in 2019, who resigned from the cast in protest of Lasseter’s hiring at Skydance, where the movie was in production. “It feels very odd to me that you and your company would consider hiring someone with Mr. Lasseter’s pattern of misconduct given the present climate in which people with the kind of power that you have can reasonably be expected to step up to the plate,” Thompson wrote in a letter published in the Los Angeles Times.

    Apple will of course be hoping for some luck, though it doesn’t have to worry about box office, since it’ll be debuting via Apple TV+ on August 5th.

    Bob (voiced by Simon Pegg) and Sam Greenfield (voiced by Eva Noblezada) in 'Luck,' premiering globally on Apple TV+ on August 5, 2022.
    (L to R) Bob (voiced by Simon Pegg) and Sam Greenfield (voiced by Eva Noblezada) in ‘Luck,’ premiering globally on Apple TV+ on August 5, 2022.
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  • The ‘Monsters, Inc.’ Cast to Reunite for Disney+ Sequel Series

    The ‘Monsters, Inc.’ Cast to Reunite for Disney+ Sequel Series

    Pixar

    “Monsters, Inc.” is back in business, with a new animated series featuring almost the entire original voice cast of the beloved Pixar flick in development for Disney’s upcoming streaming service.

    According to The Hollywood Reporter, the show, “Monsters at Work,” will be a sequel series set after the events of the original 2001 film, which starred Billy Crystal as Mike Wazowski and John Goodman as James P. Sullivan, better known as Sulley. Other returning stars include John Ratzenberger (Yeti), Jennifer Tilly (Celia), and Bob Peterson (Roz).

    The newcomers to the cast are equally as exciting. They include: Ben Feldman (“Superstore”), Kelly Marie Tran (“Star Wars: The Last Jedi”), Henry Winkler (“Barry”), Lucas Neff (“Raising Hope”), Alanna Ubach (“Coco”), Stephen Stanton (“Star Wars Resistance”), and Aisha Tyler (“Archer”).

    Here’s the breakdown for “Monsters at Work,” and who’s who among the cast, per THR’s report:

    ‘Monsters at Work’ picks up six months after the original movie with the power plant at its center now harvesting the laughter of children to fuel the city of Monstropolis. The series follows Tylor Tuskmon (Feldman), an eager and talented mechanic on the Monsters, Inc. Facilities Team who dreams of working on the Laugh Floor alongside Mike and Sulley.

    Tran will voice Val Little, Tylor’s lifelong friend and confidante; Winkler will give life to Fritz, the scatterbrained boss; Neff will voice Duncan, an opportunistic plumber; Ubach is Cutter, the officious rule follower; Stanton is Smitty and Needleman, the bumbling custodial team; and Tyler voices Tylor’s mom, Millie Tuskmon.

    We’re especially excited to see Tyler among the cast, since she’s excellent on long-running FX animated spy spoof series “Archer.” The language on this show will probably be a bit cleaner than Lana’s, though.

    “Monsters at Work” is set to premiere on Disney+ sometime in 2020. An exact launch date for that service is currently unknown, but it’s expected to arrive at the end of this year. Additional details are expected to be revealed during a Disney investor presentation this week.

    [via: The Hollywood Reporter]