Pixar executive gives reason why Disney's  'Lightyear' flopped at the box office, but ignores conservative boycott



Pixar's chief creative officer Pete Docter attempted to explain why "Lightyear" flopped at the box office. However, the Pixar executive refused to address boycotts by conservatives surrounding Disney's spinoff of the massively successful "Toy Story" franchise.

Last June, "Lightyear" made nearly $20 million less in its opening weekend than Disney anticipated.

Docter gave an interview to the entertainment website The Wrap this week. Docter was asked why the $200 million-budgeted "Lightyear" animated movie flopped at the box office. The Pixar executive claimed the movie tanked because fans of "Toy Story" – an animated movie about toys coming to life – couldn't understand that action figure toy Buzz Lightyear is a space ranger from a fictional galaxy where he battles Emperor Zurg – a robot alien villain.

"We've done a lot of soul-searching about that because we all love the movie," Docter began. "We love the characters and the premise."

Docter said, "I think probably what we've ended on in terms of what went wrong is that we asked too much of the audience."

He continued, "When they hear Buzz, they’re like, 'Great, where's Mr. Potato Head and Woody and Rex?' And then we drop them into this science fiction film that they’re like, 'What?'"

"Even if they’ve read the material in press, it was just a little too distant, both in concept, and I think in the way that characters were drawn, that they were portrayed," Docter said. "It was much more of a science fiction."

Docter said the characters in "Toy Story" are "much broader," and there was likely a "disconnect between what people wanted/expected and what we were giving to them."

Docter failed to mention that conservatives boycotted "Lightyear" because there was a same-sex lesbian kiss in the animated movie for children.

"Lightyear" originally had a same-sex kiss, but then was reportedly removed before the movie was released. However, the lesbian kiss was reinstated after Pixar employees demanded the LGBTQ validation gesture be restored as a pushback against the Parental Rights in Education bill being passed in Florida by Gov. Ron DeSantis. The bill prohibits teachers from teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity to students in kindergarten through third grade.

Pixar also replaced the iconic voice of Buzz Lightyear. Tim Allen had been the voice of Buzz Lightyear since "Toy Story" was released in 1995. Pixar replaced Allen, who is a conservative, with liberal actor Chris Evans.

Tom Hanks, the voice of Sheriff Woody, slammed Pixar for making the change.

Speaking about "Lightyear," Allen declared, "It just doesn’t seem to have any connection to the toy. There's really no 'Toy Story,' Buzz without Woody."

Evans previously said people who are "trying to hold on to what was before" will "die off like dinosaurs," and anyone against "representation" and "diversity" are "idiots."

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Tom Hanks calls Pixar out for replacing Tim Allen in new Buzz Lightyear movie: 'I don't understand'



Hollywood superstar Tom Hanks spoke out recently about his friend Tim Allen losing his role as the voice of Buzz Lightyear in the new Pixar "Lightyear" movie.

What is the background?

Actor Chris Evans voiced the iconic character in the film despite Allen voicing Buzz Lightyear in every previous installment of the "Toy Story" franchise.

Director Angus MacLane explained the character change was necessary because the Buzz Lightyear character needed to be less "goofy."

"Tim’s version of Buzz is a little goofier and is a little dumber, and so he is the comic relief," MacLane told Vanity Fair.

"In this film, Buzz is the action hero. He’s serious and ambitious and funny, but not in a goofy way that would undercut the drama," he added. "Chris Evans has the gravitas and that movie-star quality that our character needed to separate him and the movie from Tim’s version of the toy in Toy Story."

What did Allen say?

Speaking in a recent interview promoting his new movie "Elvis," Hanks was asked what he thought about Allen losing his role. The question is personal for Hanks, who voices Woody, the other leading "Toy Story" character.

Hanks responded that he does not understand why Allen was not cast for one of his signature roles.

"Is it gonna be strange to be in theater's opposite of the Buzz Lightyear film?" a reporter asked Hanks.

"How about that?" Hanks replied. "Why it’s not— I actually, I wanted to go head to head with Tim Allen and they didn’t let Tim Allen do it. I don’t, I don’t understand that."

Hanks then changed the subject when the journalist interviewing him mentioned that Evans is voicing Buzz in "Lightyear."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Hanks shot back. "But here here’s the thing: Just as long as people come back to the motion-picture theater. I want to go back into the theater with a bunch of strangers and leave with something in common. That’s what I want to do."

"Going to see a movie with him — I’m looking forward to that," he added, though it's not clear to whom Hanks was referring.

Anything else?

Allen recently addressed the situation, explaining why he has remained "silent" on not receiving the role.

"The short answer is I’ve stayed out of this ’cause it has nothing to do [with my Buzz Lightyear]," Allen said. "This is a whole new team that really had nothing to do with the first movies."

Allen also disclosed that he originally thought "Lightyear" would be a live-action movie but was surprised to learn it is an animated film. He also knocked the film for not including Woody.

"It just doesn’t seem to have any connection to the toy," Allen said of the new movie. "There's really no 'Toy Story,' Buzz without Woody."

Tim Allen weighs in on new 'Lightyear' movie, points out the mistake Disney made



Tim Allen has been the voice of Buzz Lightyear since the first "Toy Story" movie was released in 1995. Since then, Allen has been the voice of the action figure brought to life in four "Toy Story" films and six "Toy Story" video games. However, Allen is not the voice actor in Disney's latest "Lightyear" movie. Allen broke his silence on the new Buzz Lightyear movie and pointed out the mistake Disney made in the new animated movie.

Disney tapped Chris Evans to voice the main character in the movie "Lightyear," a spin-off prequel to "Toy Story." Instead of a toy coming to life, the "Lightyear" sci-fi film focuses on the Buzz Lightyear of Star Command – on whom the Buzz Lightyear toy is based.

The animated children's movie features a lesbian kiss – which caused 14 Asian and Middle Eastern countries to ban the film because of the gay scene. Actress Patricia Heaton slammed Disney for replacing Allen. She said Disney and Pixar "made a HUGE mistake" in not casting Allen as Buzz Lightyear and added, "Why would they completely castrate this iconic, beloved character?"

"Lightyear" flopped at the box office – making significantly less money in its first weekend than anticipated.

Allen explained to "Extra" why he has been silent on the new "Lightyear" movie. "The short answer is I’ve stayed out of this ’cause it has nothing to do [with my Buzz Lightyear]."

"This is a whole new team that really had nothing to do with the first movies," Allen said on Wednesday.

Allen admitted that he thought "Lightyear" would be a "live-action" movie with "real humans" and was surprised that it was an animated film.

The "Home Improvement" star said Disney made a mistake: "It just doesn’t seem to have any connection to the toy."

"There's really no 'Toy Story,' Buzz without Woody," Allen explained, making a reference to Lightyear's cowboy pal Sheriff Woody Pride.

"Lightyear" director Angus MacLane said the new movie is "its own thing."

"I think it would be even harder if it were the Toy Story Buzz going off into this movie, you know? Then you'd be like 'where's Woody?!' Because that's what makes [Toy Story Buzz] work," MacLane told GameSpot. "I could see a different version of this movie that's maybe a bit closer to the 'Buzz Lightyear: Star Command' TV show. But I think that works much better for a shorter format."

Allen – who has said that he is a "fiscal conservative" – revealed in the interview that he sometimes argues with his "Home Improvement" and "More Power" co-star Richard Karn about "knee-jerk" political positions.

"I don’t really have a position," Allen noted. "I just like to know what everybody else's position is. I’m not trying to prove the other guy wrong, I’m trying to understand and clarify. So my position is clear."

Tim Allen REACTS to ‘Lightyear’ with Chris Evans (Exclusive) www.youtube.com

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