ABOUT A TOY

BUZZ LIGHTYEAR MAY HAVE become a superstar but he was also an action figure, a child’s plaything, a T-O-Y – and not even a flying one at that. It turns out, however, that even pretend Space Rangers come from somewhere… Lightyear, Pixar’s 26th movie, imagines the film that Andy – pre-teen owner of Toy Story’s famous play room – would have watched back in 1995 when he put Star Command’s finest at the top of his birthday wishlist. In the fictional world where Pizza Planet is a popular fast-food destination and the number A113 crops up with the spooky regularity deserving of an X-Files case, the Lightyear film may be just as pivotal as Star Wars.

“I felt like there was a story that was unexplored, that could be a separate, divergent story from the universe,” writer/director Angus MacLane says of the studio’s upcoming space opera. “For me it was an opportunity to take a character that I felt familiar with [MacLane was animating Buzz as far back], and then explore his universe. Also, when you’re dealing with sci-fi, there’s so much to set up that you’re looking for anything that’s relatable, just to build around. Buzz provided that stepping-off point.”