Tim Allen finally spoke last week about the debate over his absence from the recent animated film Lightyear, and it turns out that Tom Hanks, his compatriot in the Toy Story movies, also has some thoughts on the matter.
Hanks, the voice of Buzz Lightyear’s best friend Woody, in four previous Pixar films, expressed surprise that Allen, who gave voice to the Space Ranger action figure, was not asked to participate as a voice actor in the new prequel. Lightyear, which hit theaters on June 17, features Chris Evans giving voice to the astronaut whose heroic feats inspired the toy.
In the interview with CinemaBlend before the premiere of the Hanks film, Elvis, but which just now generated media attention, the star was asked if it would seem strange to compete in theaters in front of from a Buzz movie. “What do you think of that?” Hanks replied, looking a little puzzled by the situation. “I actually wanted to go face to face with Tim Allen, and then they wouldn’t let Tim Allen do it. I don’t understand that.”
When the interviewer hinted that Evans is a big name right now, Hanks replied, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know.” Then, the actor added diplomatically: “But here’s the thing: as long as people go back to the movies. I want to go back to the theater with a bunch of strangers and leave with something in common. That’s what I want to do.”
During a video interview with Extra last week, Allen said Lightyear’s top creatives hadn’t worked on Toy Story movies, and went on to say, “There really isn’t a Toy Story’s Buzz without Woody.”
Allen then added that he would have liked Lightyear to have a stronger bond with the toy version of Buzz: “I wish there was a better connection.”
Lightyear opened with a disappointing $ 50.6 million, ranking second behind last weekend’s No. 1 film, Jurassic World Dominion.