Summary

• The nature of Buzz Lightyear's return in Toy Story 5 suggests Pixar is rectifying a key error with the character.
• Tim Allen being cast as all 51 Buzz Lightyear toys in the movie could be seen as an apology from Pixar.
• Director Andrew Stanton plans to introduce rogue Buzz Lightyear action figures in Toy Story 5, creating major conflict.

With Toy Story 5 reveals at D23 did far more than simply confirm Buzz would be coming back. The announcement strongly suggests Pixar is fixing a key regret with the character.

Allen has voiced Buzz in all four Toy Story movies to date, making Toy Story 5 his fourth in a row. However, Buzz has popped up in other Toy Story projects other than the film series. Pixar has produced many shorts and even a TV show that also features the Space Ranger. Allen has remained as the main Buzz Lightyear voice actor since his debut almost 30 years ago, but a recent spinoff movie dropped him from the cast - a move that Pixar seems to be apologizing for with his role among the Toy Story 5 cast.

Tim Allen Will Presumably Be Voicing All 51 Buzz Lightyears In Toy Story 5

Toy Story 5's director has announced 50 more Buzz Lightyears are on the way

Long-serving Pixar figure Andrew Stanton was confirmed to be Toy Story 5's writer and director at D23. During the reveal, he delivered the news that the movie will feature 50 commemorative Buzz Lightyear action figures - all stuck in "Toy Mode." Seeing as Allen voices the franchise's "main" Buzz Lightyear toy, it would make sense for him to also portray his 50 counterparts. With the actor being dropped as the voice of Buzz in 2022's Lightyear spinoff movie, it's easy to interpret this scenario as Pixar apologizing to Allen by giving him such a vital role in Toy Story 5.

Pixar has explored the idea of Buzz action figures being stuck in toy mode before.

Pixar has explored the idea of Buzz action figures being stuck in toy mode before. In Toy Story 2, a second Buzz enters the fray - convinced he's the "real" Buzz Lightyear. Similarly, Toy Story 4 reverted Buzz to his original state from the first movie, before he realized he was made of plastic and circuitry. Neither instance presented a Buzz Lightyear as a true antagonist, but Stanton's plan for the franchise's next installment makes the rogue Buzz toys sound like they will create huge problems for the other toys.

Toy Story 5 is scheduled for a cinematic release on June 19, 2026.

Why Tim Allen Didn't Voice Buzz In Lightyear

Chris Evans voiced the "original" Buzz in the spinoff

Lightyear is an incredibly meta prequel to the Toy Story franchise. The opening text reveals it was the movie that Andy saw that made him want a Buzz Lightyear in the first place. While it's confusingly set within the same canon as the other movies, Tim Allen was replaced by MCU star Chris Evans as the spinoff's title character. The logic was that Allen was just the voice of the Buzz toys, whereas Evans voiced the original character on which the action figures were based.

The casting move did help separate Lightyear from the main Toy Story movies, but it also made a premise that was already very confusing even more nonsensical. Lightyear makes less sense when the main Toy Story movies are examined, but it was a decision that Pixar ultimately thought would serve the project best. Thankfully, the recasting was only temporary, and Pixar has reinstalled Tim Allen in a big way for Toy Story 5.