Toy Story 5 Is Ushering In A New Era Of Pixar Movies

On the surface, Toy Story 5 is as familiar a movie for Pixar to make as it comes. It’s the fifth installment of the company’s most successful franchise, bringing back most of the major characters for one more adventure. And for some, making Toy Story 5 at all feels like the studio resting on its laurels after giving Buzz, Woody, and the gang fitting endings (twice) before.

A look at the new Toy Story 5 trailer suggests that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Yes, the studio is somewhat shamelessly relying on a well-known IP to revitalize its standing after some underperforming original titles. But the plot erases criticisms over Woody and Buzz reuniting after Toy Story 4. And the animated sequel is also proven to be a glimpse at big changes coming to Pixar.

Toy Story 5 Shows A Glimpse Of Pixar Using A New Animation Style

Jessie in Toy Story 5 with new animation style

While Pixar revolutionized animated movies 31 years ago with the original Toy Story, which was the first full-length computer-animated movie, they’ve kept a general style intact since then. Movies like Turning Red have had moments of experimentation, but the look Toy Story established has been the signature look of Pixar movies, with Toy Story 5 continuing that for the majority of its run.

However, the Toy Story 5 trailer also includes a brief sequence with an entirely fresh animation style, one that appears to blend CG animation with a 2D hand-painted look. This comes early on in the footage as a glimpse into Bonnie’s mind, as she imagines Forky’s wedding. The brief scene puts Buzz, Jessie, Bullseye, and other usually 3D animated characters in the new 2D style.

The experimentation in Toy Story 5 comes after Pixar has watched other animated studios earn praise for pushing the visual medium in fresh directions. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, and Flow are but a few examples.

Rather than continuing to keep its usual style (while adding more detail and textures), Pixar is ready to shake things up. Toy Story 5 is now confirmed to be the start of a whole new era for the animation studio.

Pixar’s Next Movie After Toy Story 5 Is Going All In On This New Animation Style

first art shared from Pixar's Gatto — first art shared from Pixar’s Gatto

After Toy Story 5 comes out this June, Pixar will be back in 2027 with a new, original movie, Gatto. Coming from Luca director Enrico Casarosa, it follows a black cat named Nero, who is part of the mob. Gatto comes out on March 5, and when Pixar announced the movie, it showcased a new hand-painted animation style, the same one that has now seemingly been glimpsed in Toy Story 5.

But unlike the fifth Toy Story film, Gatto will be completely animated in this new 2D hand-painted style. Pixar CCO Pete Docter recently told BAFTA that the film is set in Venice and the animation style is trying to capture the “living painting” aesthetic of the city. As for why they’re making the change now, Docter said the following:

We’re at an interesting point in animation history where people have grown up with so much around them that they’re looking for something new

The question now becomes how much Pixar will lean into this animation style going forward. With sequels like Incredibles 3 and Coco 2 in development, they’ll likely retain the studio’s classic look to visually align with previous installments. But hopefully there will be more original films that experiment with this new style, and other fresh approaches, as well as using sequels like Toy Story 5 to test out what works.