Pixar is known for delving into serious and mature topics, and the Toy Story films are certainly no exception with all the times they got surprisingly dark for a family film. The first Toy Story film effectively launched Pixar Animation Studios into the spotlight in 1995, and over the subsequent three decades they haven’t relented, gifting audiences with remarkable films like Finding Nemo, Up, Inside Out, and in 2023, Elemental. Their ability to impart dark tones into what looks on the surface like a simple family comedy is remarkable, and Pixar has proven time and time again it’s ability to do so.
Pixar is rightfully celebrated in the landscape of animated movies, especially compared to their frequent partners at Disney, for their films being equally geared to both children and adults. The Toy Story franchise is the epitome of that as the stories have evolved as its audiences have matured. Excitingly, despite its unnecessarily convoluted marketing story elements, Lightyear has reinforced prospects for Toy Story 5, though it has yet to be confirmed. It remains to be seen how it will continue without Woody given Toy Story 4’s conclusion. Whatever the case it will surely follow in its predecessor’s footsteps and narratively take audiences down unexpectedly dark avenues.RELATED: Barbie Almost Had A Major Role In Toy Story 1 (Why Was She Cut?)
10 Woody Visits Sid’s Bedroom
Throughout Toy Story, Sid was built up as a menace. He proves that while kids give toys life with their love and imagination, they can take it too. He sadistically enjoys torturing the toys, though admittedly he should have no reason to believe they’re alive, ripping them apart, blowing them up, putting them back together, and then doing it all over again. No wonder Sid’s toys don’t talk, they’re too broken to do so, both literally and figuratively. As such, when Woody and Buzz are taken to his home, they are met with horrific and alarming sights.
The sequence with Sid’s tortured toys is unexpectedly frightening, especially for younger viewers. Given their scary appearance, the audience is naturally inclined to think they’ll be scary and antagonistic. Thankfully, Woody and Buzz discover a spark of light and hope in them and gave them an opportunity to repay Sid for all the pain he inflicted on them.
9 Buzz Goes Sailing No More
While Woody struggles with his feelings of being replaced, Buzz conversely comes to terms with his reality. In setting the pattern for Pixar’s “What if X had feelings” formula, Toy Story showcased Buzz’s sad realization that he was truly just a toy, and not even an original one at that. This moment isn’t dark due to any scary content, but for the deep emotional beats. Viewers can see the hope fade from Buzz’s plastic eyes as he tries to push past his feelings to fly only to fall hard, again, literally and figuratively.
This moment stands out as it must be a constant experience for toys in the world of Toy Story, only not everyone’s existential crisis results in them losing an arm nor are they set to Randy Newman’s “I Will Go Sailing No More.” Interestingly, Toy Story 4 features a similar sequence when Forky constantly tries to throw himself away upon realizing his reality. Luckily though for Buzz, thanks to Andy and his toys, he found that hope once more.
8 Woody’s Post-Rip Nightmare
In a way, Woody could be portrayed as Toy Story’s villain given his actions in trying to kick Buzz out of his life. While he overcame his trepidations and became best friends with Buzz, Woody never lost his fear of rejection. It’s best demonstrated after Woody is accidentally ripped, restricting him from being able to go to the cowboy camp with Andy. He is shelved by Andy’s mom, and dreams that because of the rip, Andy will never play with him again.
At first glance, this scene feels normal, but quickly the viewer realizes its true function as a nightmare. It’s quite a relatable moment for many adults, and the sudden and somewhat violent nature of the collection of arms dragging Woody down into the darkness is unexpectedly striking. This moment also stands out as it leads directly into Wheezy’s discovery and the tragedy he faced, being utterly abandoned and forgotten.
7 Jessie’s Upsetting Story (& THAT Song)
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Toy Story 2 was accidentally deleted during production which meant it almost never saw the light of day, but thankfully it was recovered, otherwise, audiences never would’ve experienced the greatness that is Jessie and her heartbreaking backstory. It’s certainly one of the most emotional moments of the entire Toy Story franchise as Jessie recounts her life with Emily. It’s remarkably similar to what Woody has with Andy, who he is so desperate to return to, but Jessie watched as her kid grew up, forgot her, and then left her on the side of the road at a donation center.
With Sarah McLachlan’s “When She Loved Me” perfectly capturing each emotional beat, this sequence shows how deep the hold of negative emotions and fears can have on someone, slowly poisoning their spirit. She lost hope and thought it would never return. This is then punctuated by Jessie saying, “You never forget kids like Emily or Andy, but they forget you.” This moment is then enhanced by a theory that Emily is actually Andy’s mom. Whether that’s true or not, Jessie did find her new home with Andy, and then again with Bonnie.
6 Lotso’s Backstory & Torment Of Big Baby
Of course, Toy Story 3 is renowned for being a gut-punch emotionally from the early realization of how many of Andy’s toys were gone to the iconic ending. One great example is the realization of Lotso’s backstory. He takes what Jessie had experienced in Toy Story 3 and utterly intensifies it to its most dangerous extent. While she got depressed over her rejection, he became wrathful, vindictive, and cruel. He was anything but the cuddly teddy bear with a sweet strawberry scent he looks like. The instant he sees that his kid, Daisy, had replaced him, something snapped in him.
Such exposition, while clearly dark, is why Toy Story 3 ranks highly as one of Pixar’s best films. What’s worse and perfectly notes Lotso’s evil and villainous nature is that he decided to take his anger and sadness out on the toys around him, especially Big Baby. Because of this, Lotso made countless toys suffer at Sunnyside.
5 All Your Favorite Toys Accept The Burning Embrace Of Death
The moment in the incinerator in Toy Story 3 is probably one of the most infamous scenes in the entire franchise and is what makes the film stand out from the rest. Naturally, audiences aren’t wired to expect a primary protagonist to die, let alone the entire main cast, especially not in a children’s film, regardless of how serious Pixar films can get. It would go against the natural order of things, but remarkably, Toy Story 3 was almost going to end with the incinerator scene.
Fortunately, they all made it out alive thanks to the unexpected actions of the little aliens. However, for an intensely heartbreaking moment, both the characters and the audience comes to accept the fiery doom facing them. This moment is especially stark given Lotso’s actions. Again, there’s a brief inclination that he’ll do the right thing after Woody and Buzz help save him from the shredder. Yet, he was true to who he is and betrayed them, leaving them to die, and suffering the eternal consequences for it, strapped to the front of a truck.
4 Andy Finally Lets Woody Go
If Toy Story 3 had concluded with the incinerator scene, audiences wouldn’t have been gifted with the revolutionary and harrowing moment when Andy decided to give up all his toys, Woody included. It’s not as overtly dark as other moments, but it is extremely emotionally charged. That’s why Toy Story 3’s ending beats Toy Story 4’s, both feature sad farewells, but the former is more resonating and definitive.
In this moment, Andy officially says goodbye to his childhood, effectively thanking the toys for all the joy and fun they brought to his life. Importantly, there is a brief moment when it seems that Andy isn’t ready to give up Woody, his favorite, and that the cowboy would be separated from his family. But, of course, he does, and the film ends with a hopeful tone of new beginnings, but the sequence is not without its amped-up sentimentality.
3 Bo Peep Says Goodbye To Woody
Toy Story 4 features some relatively serious beats, including Gabby Gabby’s story and her henchmen’s menacing aura. However, what really stands out from this film revolves around Bo Peep, the fairy tale shepherdess lamp decoration and Woody’s love interest. Bo was included among the many toys that were lost to time, donations drives, and yard sales over the years in Toy Story 3. Toy Story 4 showcased that harrowing moment.
As Andy’s sister, Molly, had grown up, she didn’t need a nightlight anymore, especially not a childish one like Bo. As such, like Jessie, Bo was to be donated away. Her departure is quite emotional as she accepts her fate, but Woody doesn’t. He even nearly joins her but decides against it as Andy might still need him. He watches in the rain, unable to move or react, as she is taken away, and he never expected he would run into her a decade later, especially not at a random carnival.
2 Buzz Misses An Entire Lifetime In Lightyear
Lightyear is the most overtly mature entry with various serious moments, including the dark joke surrounding Sox’s death. That comes from being about real people rather than living toys. In fact, the premise of Lightyear is remarkably dark. As Buzz and his crewmates get stuck on a strange world, they need a special hyperspace crystal to get off, but its experimental development cost Buzz immensely.
With each test flight, Buzz traveled farther into the future to the point that an entire generation had passed. Buzz’s friends had lived their lives without him. He never got to celebrate Alisha’s engagement to Kiko, nor the birth of her children. Because he was so determined to correct his mistake, he never got to live his life. It’s incredibly tragic just to think about it.
1 Buzz Lightyear Becomes The Villain
Importantly, Toy Story 2 establishes Zurg as Buzz’s father, coyly playing off Luke and Darth Vader in Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back. However, Lightyear instead reveals that Zurg is actually Buzz Lightyear, an older version from the original timeline who escaped so far into the future that he encountered the advanced technology required to travel back in time. He became hellbent on restoring the proper timeline, even at the expense of the good that came out of the time dilations, such as Alisha and Kiko’s life together and Izzy’s birth.
Audiences certainly weren’t expecting that Buzz Lightyear would also be the film’s villain in addition to its hero. Significantly, this choice demonstrates how the remorse Buzz felt for stranding himself and his crew on T’Kani Prime had taken hold of him. This is what helps the original Buzz accept his reality and new home. Intriguingly, while it might’ve seemed that Zurg was defeated, Lightyear already teased a sequel when the post-credits showed that evil Buzz is still very much alive. Altogether, this element from Lightyear with the other dark moments throughout the Toy Story films showcase why Pixar films are for everyone. They transcend the notion of children’s movies and incorporate dark moments dealing with serious subject matter.
