If you had asked me after the bittersweet ending of Toy Story 4 if we needed another one, my answer would have been a flat no. But I’m starting to see the vision. Pixar isn’t just making another sequel; they’re making a movie about the death of playtime as we know it.
While what we’ve seen from Toy Story 5 sounds like a Boomer’s fever dream on paper, the execution looks incredibly sharp. At CinemaCon 2026, franchise stars Tim Allen and Tom Hanks took the stage to introduce footage from the upcoming film.
Lilypad, a high-tech electronic tablet voiced by Greta Lee is not a villain in the Sid or Lotso sense; she’s an existential threat. Footage has shown Bonnie completely mesmerized by Lilypad’s glowing screen, while Woody, Buzz, and Jessie look on from the floor, literally relegated to the shadows. It’s a haunting visual for a franchise that has always been about the utility of a toy.
Pixar is at a crossroads. With Zootropolis 2 also on the horizon, the studio is leaning heavily on established IP to steady the ship. But Toy Story 5 doesn’t look like a cash grab. It looks like a movie about obsolescence in the age of the algorithm. If they can stick the landing, this might actually justify reopening the toy box one more time.
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