Several Toy Story characters have been removed from a Disney theme park just weeks after Tim Allen’s Buzz Lightyear met the same fate.
Pixar Animation Studios may be going through a rough spot right now, but it will always have Toy Story to serve as its shining light. The first film, Toy Story (1995), made history as the first feature-length computer-animated film and soon won over audiences with the adventures of Woody (Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) – the latter of which refuses to accept that he is a toy.
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Fast-forward nearly 30 years, and the Pixar film has spawned three sequels, with Toy Story 5 on the way in 2025. While we don’t know much about this sequel yet, we do know that Hanks, Allen, and Joan Cusack (who voices Jessie) will return and that it’ll be directed by Pixar alumnus Andrew Stanton. One actor who sadly won’t return is Don Rickles (Mr. Potato Head), who passed away in 2017.
The Toy Story universe is also a firm fixture in Disney’s theme parks, with versions of Toy Story Land currently present in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Hong Kong Disneyland, Shanghai Disneyland, and Walt Disney Studios Park, as well as other Toy Story attractions present at Disney’s California Adventure Park, Tokyo DisneySea, and Tokyo Disneyland (although this will soon replace its ride with a Wreck-It Ralph attraction).
The majority of these lands and attractions follow a similar approach to immersing guests in the world of Toy Story. Supersized features and smart scaling tricks help guests feel like they’ve shrunk down to the size of Woody and Buzz themselves as they explore Andy’s backyard or the inside of a toy chest.
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Confusingly, at Walt Disney Studios Park’s Toy Story Playland, it’s a giant Buzz Lightyear that welcomes you to the land (despite the fact that, theoretically, being the size of a toy, Buzz should be your size). The land is a small part of the overarching Worlds of Pixar area, which also contains Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy, Crush’s Coaster, and Cars ROAD TRIP.
Thematic consistency aside, the mammoth Buzz Lightyear figure previously raised eyebrows in May when it disappeared from the land completely.
🔧 And in Toy Story Playland, Buzz Lightyear is under refurbishment.
🔧 And in Toy Story Playland, Buzz Lightyear is under refurbishment: pic.twitter.com/qpRZfsmNuB
— DLP Report (@DLPReport) May 14, 2024
A refurbishment on the figure (which also sporadically talks to guests) meant it was covered with a giant tarp.
Now, other characters have followed suit. DLP Report claims that the Toy Soldiers, Hamm, and Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head (all of which were infamously out of scale) have been removed from the entrance to Toy Story Playland, too.
🔧 The out of scale Toy Story figurines have been removed from across the Toy Story Playland entrance (before/after).
🔧 The out of scale Toy Story figurines have been removed from across the Toy Story Playland entrance (before/after): pic.twitter.com/Ohzp0faTQF
— DLP Report (@DLPReport) June 13, 2024
There’s no update on why just yet, but judging by the responses from fellow Disneyland Paris fans, it wouldn’t be a huge loss if these figures never returned. “Nature is healing,” wrote X (formerly known as Twitter) user @eftel_theming, while @HWStrashcanlogo noted, “We won.”
Walt Disney Studios Park is currently in the middle of a massive makeover, so these kinds of random changes aren’t out of the ordinary. The entire entrance to the park is closed right now as Studio 1 undergoes a total renovation. Meanwhile, World of Frozen is currently under construction, as is a new attraction inspired by Tangled (2010).
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Another land inspired by Star Wars was initially announced for the park. However, this plan seems to have been quietly scrapped, as Disney has made no mention or update of its construction in a long time. Some have theorized that the space allotted to this land will instead be used for an area inspired by The Lion King (1994).
When the park’s construction is complete, it will debut a new name: Disney Adventure World. This hasn’t exactly gone down well with fans, but it is representative of the park’s new theme: experiencing the movies instead of the studios that make them.
Who’s your favorite character in the Toy Story franchise?
