Original Toy Story director reportedly critical of Lightyear spinoff
Original Toy Story director John Lasseter is reportedly critical of this year's Lightyear spinoff and yet another major flop for Disney.
Following its memorable box office explosion, a new report suggests that original Toy Story director John Lasseter was very critical of the Lightyear spinoff film. The film, which opens in theaters this June, explores the origin story of the character who would go on to inspire Tim Allen's beloved toy, recast as Buzz by Chris Evans as he tries to save the His fellow Starcomman officers later find themselves stranded in the future from the alien planet they were stranded on. "Light Years," co-written and directed by Angus MacLane, was well-received by critics and audiences alike upon its release, but that didn't translate to box-office receipts, as compared to a $200 million production budget, it grossed just over $226 million, making it a box office bomb.
A recent article in Matthew Belloni's Puck newsletter reflects recent changes in Hollywood animation, including former Pixar CEO John Lasseter now leading Skydance Animation . The report also noted that two people who spoke to the original "Toy Story" director said he was "extremely picky" about "Light Years" and "Oddworld," Disney's 2022 box office flops. It is said Lasseter After 25 years of "creating and cultivating" the eponymous Space Ranger, with additional disdain for the latter project's failure, he helmed the first two installments of the Toy Story franchise and teamed up with Pixar veterinarians Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton Developed this story with Joe Ranft.
Why Lightyear Was A Rare Pixar Bomb
As it turns out, the Lightyear bombing's box office surprises many for a number of reasons, starting with its larger franchise ties, Toy Story 3 and Toy Story 4 "both surpassed the $1 billion mark. Plus, after Disney opted to premiere Soul, Luca, and Turn Red on Disney+ during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the spin-off is Pixar's first solo film, and families are expected to support it. The explosion led some to believe audiences weren't ready to go back to theaters for family-friendly movies, except for Minions: Rise of Gru's record-breaking $939 million, the most of any animated film in 2022, with Proof that this is not the case.
One of the biggest contributors to Lightyear Explosion was the decision to recast Allen with Chris Evans, a move that was met with major disagreement among Toy Story fans, Who largely doesn't accept its interpretation because it's technically a different character. Another major factor in the film's box office failure was competition from "Jurassic World," which just passed the $1 billion mark, and "Top Gun: Maverick," the latter of which became Tom Cruise's biggest hit. The year's biggest surprise hit with the best reviews and critical acclaim. The highest-grossing film of the year. Even when it premiered on Disney+, Lightyear was only moderately successful in the ratings, far behind Oscar-winning Encanto, which has set multiple records since it began streaming on the platform.
Much like Light Years, Disney's Oddworld proved to be a shock to the House of Mouse on multiple fronts, grossing just $66.5 million against a reported $180 million production budget, which some analysts expected The film will cost the studio about $147 million. The film also broke Disney's 30-year streak of audience ratings of A- or higher on CinemaScore, earning just a B, which was said to be a factor in the box office failure while lacking the same marketing push that other major Disney releases have. . While there's no talk of yet another Toy Story movie It looks like Lightyear's failure will halt any other installments in the franchise for a while in the near future.
