While the debate continues amongst franchise fans, Tom Hanks has weighed in on Tim Allen's Buzz being recast for Lightyear. Hanks and Allen previously led the cast of the Toy Story franchise as Woody and Buzz, the two most prized possessions of young boy Andy as they went on a number of adventures dealing with malicious neighbors, moving woes and their owner growing up and leaving them behind. The duo have received rave reviews for their performances in the Toy Story movies as well as the films themselves, having carried their roles through four mainline movies.
Lightyear acts as an origin story for the in-universe fictional space adventurer that Allen's Buzz is based on, exploring his early days as a Space Ranger as he tries to help his crew escape from an alien planet he marooned them on. With the story shifting focus away from the toys, Chris Evans has taken over the role of Buzz from Allen, a move which has left many Toy Story fans divided on the necessity of the shift. As the film continues to underperform at the box office, one franchise vet is sharing their thoughts on the Lightyear recasting.
While speaking with CinemaBlend to discuss his work in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, Tom Hanks weighed in on the Lightyear recast debate. The Toy Story star shared that it felt weird to see another actor take over the part from his co-star and friend Tim Allen and questioned the studio's decision to do so. See what Hanks said below:
"How about that? I actually wanted to go head-to-head with Tim Allen and then they didn't let Tim Allen do it. I don't understand that. Here's the thing: I want to go back in the theatre with a bunch of strangers and leave with something in common. That's what I want to do and, going to see a movie with [Allen] – I'm looking forward to that."
Allen recently finally broke his silence on being recast in Lightyear, explaining that the studio execs who were in charge of the four Toy Story movies were not behind the spinoff and that he feels there's no major connections to the mainline films, though noting it is a "wonderful story." Hanks' comments on the Lightyear recasting largely lines up with many divided audiences' feeling on the matter, with many questioning the decision and the lack of other Toy Story characters appearing in the film. Those behind the movie, including director Angus MacLane and star Chris Evans, have tried to defend the Lightyear recasting, explaining that the film's spinoff nature and more serious tone necessitated a different actor taking on the Buzz mantle.
The division over the Lightyear recasting seems to have ultimately worked against the movie's favor, with it having only grossed $189 million against its $200 million production budget, despite being the first Pixar movie to hit theaters since Onward released just prior to the pandemic. The Toy Story spinoff was further hampered by competition from Top Gun: Maverick, which recently became the second film since the pandemic to cross $1 billion at the box office, and Jurassic World: Dominion and is projected to be Pixar's third major box office flop after Onward and The Good Dinosaur. Audiences can decide for themselves on the Lightyear recasting debate with the film now in theaters.
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