'Toy Story 5' Director Justifies Making a Fifth Movie After 31 Years

Toy Story 5 co-director Kenna Harris is embracing the pressure of stewarding a beloved franchise and answered the question many long-time fans had: does Toy Story need another sequel? Toy Story 3 felt like a definitive ending for the characters, and that made the idea of more films fraught for some viewers.

Harris said, "These movies are all very good. But if you're nostalgic for Toy Story in any way, this movie really delivers, because it's talking about nostalgia and how the characters are experiencing that feeling too. The devices in the film are explored in a way that might surprise you.

And the playtime sequences especially — it's a blast." It took Pixar nine years to release Toy Story 4, and seven more to launch the latest sequel. Toys have dramatically changed over the past 16 years, and Toy Story 5's premise leans on that shift: toward the end of Toy Story 3, Andy entrusts Woody, Buzz, and the gang to Bonnie, and now Bonnie is older and exposed to social media, leaving the toys feeling left out.

toy story, pixar, kenna harris, woody, buzz, bonnie, nostalgia, social media, toys, sequel