Hold onto your cowboy hats and space helmets, folks, because the Toy Story gang is about to face a villain far more terrifying than Sid, Lotso. Or a neighborhood yard sale.
Hollywood legend Tom Hanks dropped some truth bombs to BBC about the upcoming animated flick, revealing that the franchise is boldly going where every modern parent has gone before: the battle against screen addiction.
This time around, the root of all evil isn't a malfunctioning toy, but a slick new antagonist named Lilypad—a frog-like tablet that completely hypnotizes kids, driving a huge digital wedge between children and their once-beloved toys, Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and Jessie.
Hanks, who is back in the saddle as everyone's favorite cowboy, admitted the cast didn't have to look far for inspiration, noting that the team could deeply relate to the film's central theme.
Speaking to the BBC, Hanks didn’t sugarcoat this modern-day tech trap, describing screen fixation as a major generational issue and pointing out how technology inevitably defines an era and shapes how we behave.
If you think a tablet-shaped villain sounds a bit dramatic, Hanks highlighted one specific scene in the movie that paints a pretty eerie picture, showing the unmistakable glow of phones illuminating bedrooms across an entire city. According to Hanks, that glowing image alone "strikes terror into the heart."
The space ranger himself is feeling the exact same cosmic shift. In that very same BBC report, Tim Allen, the iconic voice behind Buzz Lightyear, echoed those exact concerns with a little real-world data from his own living room. Allen recalled a recent trip to the cinema with his teen daughter, where she struggled to stay engaged throughout an entire movie.
According to Allen, his daughter quickly predicted the plot of the film they were watching and lost interest early on. And while the veteran actor didn't exactly love her impatience, he had to admit she wasn't entirely wrong. It turns out, even Star Command can’t compete with a fast-scrolling algorithm.
Set to hit Philippine theaters on Wednesday, 17 June, Toy Story 5 brings back the legendary trio of Hanks, Allen, and Joan Cusack to voice Woody, Buzz, and Jessie. Joining the playroom chaos is actress Greta Lee, who will be providing the voice for Lilypad, the franchise's newest, tech-savvy villain.