Long-time Toy Story fans who are now all grown up are, unfortunately, fully aware that the film series was made by like-minded adults.
As innocent as the films may seem at surface level, everything, including the story, the characters, and the world they inhabit, was crafted by countless talented individuals still very much in touch with their inner child. This is just one of many reasons why the Toy Story series resonates so deeply with both children and grown-ups alike.
The fact that the films were made by adults also explains why they’re peppered with rude jokes. It’s no mystery that the Toy Story films contain innuendos designed to go straight over the younger viewers’ heads and provide some belly-chuckles for older audiences.
In the 1995 original, there’s the heavy flirting (sexual tension) between Woody (Tom Hanks) and Bo Peep (Annie Potts), Buzz Lightyear‘s, ahem, “winged erection” scene, and the “hooker” toy in Sid’s bedroom (yep, the fishing rod with Barbie legs… get it?). Barbie (Jodi Benson) also tells Ken (Michael Keaton) in Toy Story 3 (2010) that she likes his “as(s)…cot”.
There’s no shortage of dirty jokes and double entendres throughout the films. But one stands out more than the rest, and it comes from Mr. Potato Head (Don Rickles), the most reliable source of adult humor in the films.
Related: ‘Toy Story’: “Deleted Scene” Shows Andy Finding Out Woody Is Alive
Mr. Potato Head Is the Worst Culprit for Adult Jokes
Remember when Mr. Potato Head uses his detachable lips to mimic kissing his own butt (as a way of telling Slinky that’s what he’s doing to Woody) in the first film?
Or when he says to Hockey Puck, “What are you looking at, you hockey puck?” It doesn’t take a genius to work out what was probably meant by that. Clue: it rhymes with “hockey puck” (although, with that said, it was also one of actor Don Rickles’ catchphrases).
But how about when he repeatedly tells himself he’s “a married spud” while tempted by Barbie’s beauty in Toy Story 2 (1999)? Mr. Potato Head is the master of innuendo, but nothing leaves viewers quite as shocked than his extremely rude Toy Story 3 joke.
In the 2010 film, when Lotso (Ned Beatty) snatches Mrs. Potato Head’s mouth from her face, her angry husband barks, “Hey, no one takes my wife’s mouth, except me!”
We won’t explain why this is very wrong (and extremely hilarious) — we’ll just treat you like an adult. You know, just like these family-friendly Pixar films do!
Toy Story 5 Is Coming Soon
We wonder what adult jokes Toy Story 5 (2026) will have? Well, it’s not the only reason we’re excited to see Woody and the gang back together, but our inner adult is curious.
“The toys are back in Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story 5, and this time around it’s Toy meets Tech,” the synopsis for the film reads. “Buzz, Woody, Jessie and the rest of the gang’s jobs get exponentially harder when they go head to head with this all-new threat to playtime.”
Toy Story 5 releases in theaters on June 19, 2026.
What other adult jokes have you spotted in the Toy Story films? Sound off below!
