Pixar is returning to theaters with Lightyear and a new report explains why the Toy Story-adjacent movie did not go to Disney+ like other recent titles. In an effort to continue using the Toy Story brand, Pixar announced plans to give Buzz Lightyear his own movie. Instead of a spinoff movie featuring Tim Allen as the space ranger after the events of Toy Story 4, the film cast Chris Evans as Buzz Lightyear for an in-universe movie that inspired the toy Andy came to love.
The arrival of Lightyear comes at a fascinating point in Pixar’s history. The studio has seen many changes come its way since COVID-19 began, with the biggest being Disney’s decision to repeatedly push their films to streaming. Soul received an exclusive release on Disney+ in late 2020 to give the streaming service a big boost at a time when theaters were still largely closed. Instead of being a one-time event, Disney put Pixar’s next two movies, Luca and Turning Red, exclusively on Disney+ as well. Lightyear marks the first exclusively theatrical release for a Pixar movie since early 2020 when Onward was in theaters until they shut down.
In the lead-up to Lightyear‘s release, Disney and Pixar’s decision to release the movie in theaters has raised questions about why Soul, Luca, and Turning Red did not receive the same treatment. Some of the big discussion points became how these other three films were not part of an existing franchise and that they all featured creative teams and main characters who are not straight white men. It also created some frustration within Pixar that their movies were now just becoming part of Disney’s effort to boost subscribers. In a new report from Vulture, an unnamed animated familiar with Disney’s release strategies explained Lightyear‘s theatrical debut versus the other recent Pixar movies. Read their quote below:
It’s a franchise play. But more than that, to be a franchise, you need theatrical to be more valuable on streaming venues. Lightyear was always headed for the big screen. There’s a lot of merch involved and merch sells more and faster with a theatrical run.
This explanation does not come directly from Pixar, so it should not be taken as the official reason why Lightyear got a theatrical release – even if it makes sense. Disney and Pixar saw Toy Story 4 make more than $1 billion in 2019 and know that the franchise’s strong fanbase will turn out to see the Buzz Lightyear film in theaters. It is also worth remembering, though, that the theatrical landscape is still only now finding its footing after COVID-19. Whereas Lightyear has high box office expectations and can follow some successful summer blockbusters, Pixar’s other movies might have not had as strong of starts in theaters as they received on Disney+.
All eyes are now on Lightyear to see if Pixar and Disney made the right decision. Lightyear‘s box office projections are for a solid opening weekend, but it won’t eclipse pre-pandemic Pixar movies like Toy Story 4 or Incredibles 2. Pixar and Disney will need Lightyear to have great legs at the box office and then also be a strong performer on Disney+. The irony, of course, is that Disney’s decision to put recent Pixar films on the streaming service might de-incentivize audiences from rushing to theaters for Lightyear.
