1 Toy Story 4 Line Reveals What Movie Pixar Should’ve Made Instead Of Lightyear

There’s a seemingly throwaway line in Toy Story 4 that could have been used to create another Pixar movie which would have been far more effective than 2022’s Lightyear. The line in question is only short, and while it’s important to the plot of Toy Story 4, it could have been pivotal to a Pixar movie that was never made. Lightyear took an interesting approach to tying itself into the Toy Story canon by taking the form of a 1995 in-universe movie seen by Andy, but one Toy Story 4 moment proves Pixar overthought their next entry into the franchise.

Toy Story 4 ended perfectly in 2019, meaning a fifth movie wasn’t strictly necessary. As such, Pixar went on to release the Buzz Lightyear meta spinoff movie three years later. Lightyear flopped at the box office, possibly due to its confusing premise and the fact Pixar dropped Tim Allen as the voice of the famous Space Ranger. Now, Toy Story 5‘s confirmation could be the savior the legendary studio is looking for. However, Pixar could have avoided this failure if they’d latched on to a compelling statement from Woody in Toy Story 4 and built the next movie around that.

Toy Story 4 Reveals Woody Was Made 40 Years Before The First Movie

Woody tells Gabby Gabby he was made in the 1950s

Ahead of Gabby Gabby’s nefarious plot to steal Woody’s voicebox in Toy Story 4, she asks the apparently innocuous question, “May I ask, when were you made?” to which Woody replies, “Me? Uh, I’m not sure. Late 50s?” Seeing as the first Toy Story was released and set in 1995, this suggests that Woody was around four decades old when the first movie was released. Everything shown on-screen about Woody’s life takes place after 1995, meaning there is a great deal of unknown information about his pre-Toy Story existence.

The history of Woody isn’t a complete mystery, or at least, the history of Woody dolls in general isn’t as ambiguous as one might think. Toy Story 2 reveals that Woody was made as merchandise for a fictional show called Woody’s Roundup. If Woody was made in the late 50s as he claims in Toy Story 4, then this would roughly align with when the show was on the air before it was canceled. If so, that makes it even more interesting why Woody had no knowledge of Woody’s Roundup when it’s revealed to him in Toy Story 2.

Andy’s Mom Calls Woody An “Old Family Toy” In Toy Story 2

Little is known about Woody before the first Toy Story movie

Toy Story 4 isn’t the only movie in the franchise to drop hints about Woody’s pre-Andy life. When Al tries to purchase Woody at the yard sale in Toy Story 2, Andy’s mom tells the avid collector that Woody isn’t for sale as he’s an, “Old family toy.” Of course, while Andy’s mom may be simply referring to the fact that her son had owned Woody for several years, it could also mean that Woody has been handed down through generations of the family tree.

Woody’s status as a decades-old toy makes the generational toy theory very possible, as there’s a lot of his life otherwise unaccounted for if he didn’t also belong to Andy’s ancestors. There is also the theory that Woody once belonged to Andy’s dad – a character who is never shown on-screen or even mentioned in passing. This would explain Woody’s innate desire to look after Andy, as a toy being handed from parent to child is some pretty strong symbolism in a universe like Toy Story.

A Woody Spinoff Movie Would Have Worked Better Than Lightyear

Making Lightyear was an unusual Pixar decision

Woody’s age reveal in Toy Story 4 immediately opens up questions about his character’s past. Even a glimpse of Woody’s journey from the shelf of a toy store to being in Andy’s possession would have been a rewarding prospect after nearly thirty years of Toy Story movies. Therefore, a movie chronicling Woody’s pre-Andy life would have been a much more effective and desirable alternative than Lightyear.

The Buzz spinoff movie is a fascinating idea on paper, but when the franchise has spent decades building on the character of Tim Allen’s Buzz from the main movies, it’s a big ask to expect fans to care too much about a brand-new version of Buzz Lightyear. A Woody spinoff movie would have added to the backstory of a beloved Pixar character, and the studio had set it up perfectly during Woody’s exchange with Gabby Gabby in Toy Story 4.

While Toy Story canon hasn’t exactly been derailed by Buzz’s spinoff, Lightyear raises several questions about Buzz and Toy Story in general that could have been avoided. As a result, the movie franchise is now a little messier than the clean-cut saga it was before 2022. A Woody prequel movie would have enriched the “main” Toy Story universe and not needed the narrative gymnastics that Lightyear needed to fit into the same continuity.

Woody’s Pre-1995 Life Would Make A Cool Addition To Toy Story 5

Toy Story 4 proves the film series is willing to do flashbacks

Even though Lightyear happened and a Woody spinoff didn’t, that doesn’t mean it’s too late to witness Woody’s earlier years on the big screen. With Toy Story 5 coming in June 2026, the fourth Toy Story sequel could address Woody’s unseen history. Flashbacks aren’t common in the Toy Story franchise, but Toy Story 4 bucked the trend of linear storytelling in 2019 when the movie opened with a look back to how and when Bo Peep left Andy’s family home.

It’s only a short prologue, and it’s necessary for the rest of the movie to make sense, but now the flashback floodgates have been opened, it makes it more likely that Toy Story 5 could reuse the storytelling device. In addition, Toy Story 4 essentially shifted the saga’s focus to following Woody’s story almost entirely. The rest of the toys are all settled in their new lives with Bonnie, but Woody’s split from the rest of the gang suggests Toy Story 5 will also largely be about him, Bo Peep, and the other Lost Toys.

As such, a healthy dose of retrospection would fit the tone of a movie that follows Woody after his time being owned by a kid. The flashback sequences could address why Woody wasn’t aware of Woody’s Roundup in Toy Story 2, who his owner was before Andy, and even if he remembers any of this going into the first movie. As a result, Toy Story 5 could potentially end the franchise while also being its most enlightening entry regarding Woody’s backstory, easily surpassing the new information about Buzz in Lightyear, all thanks to a small exchange in Toy Story 4.