Lightyear (2022)

Lightyear is an upcoming American computer-animated science-fiction action film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Pictures and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is a spin-off of the Toy Story film series, serving as an origin story for the fictional human character Buzz Lightyear, who inspired the action figure of the same name. It is being directed by Angus MacLane (in his feature directorial debut) and stars the voice of Chris Evans as the titular character with Taika Waititi. The film explores Buzz Lightyear, a young test pilot who will become a Space Ranger.

Lightyear is scheduled to be theatrically released on June 17, 2022.

Premise
Lightyear revolves around the fictional origin story of Buzz Lightyear, the character who inspired the action figure in the Toy Story films.

Voice cast

 * Chris Evans as Buzz Lightyear
 * Taika Waititi

Development
Development on Lightyear started after finishing work on Finding Dory (2016). After co-directing Dory with Andrew Stanton, Angus MacLane was allowed to pitch the idea of making a Buzz Lightyear film, having always wondered what movie Andy Davis saw in the original Toy Story (1995) to get interested in a Buzz Lightyear action figure. MacLane, also a science fiction fan, had felt attracted to the Lightyear character since he started working at Pixar, feeling that the film's story was very "personal" for him. An aspect present in the Toy Story films that Lightyear explores is Buzz's disagreement over the nature of reality, which, coupled with his heroic ideals, made an amalgam of sci-fi clichés that MacLane intended to make more than just a punchline.

In February 2019, Tim Allen, who voiced Buzz in the films, expressed interest in doing another film as he "did not see any reason why they would not do it". On The Ellen DeGeneres Show that May, Tom Hanks, the voice of Sheriff Woody, said that Toy Story 4 (2019) would be the final installment in the franchise, but producer Mark Nielsen disclosed a possibility of a fifth film, as Pixar was not ruling out that possibility.

In December 2020 at a Disney Investor Day meeting, Lightyear was announced as a spin-off film depicting the in-universe origin of the human Buzz Lightyear, with Chris Evans providing the character's voice.

Casting
Chris Evans was announced to have been cast as the human Buzz Lightyear upon the project's announcement in December 2020. Evans was the first and only choice MacLane had for Buzz. He visited Pixar's offices one day and they pitched him the project during a visit. Evans accepted the offer immediately, given his love for animation. Taika Waititi was reported to have been cast in an undisclosed role, in November 2021.

Marketing
The marketing campaign for Lightyear began on October 27, 2021, with the release of a teaser trailer that received 83 million views in its first 24 hours. Compared to other Pixar films, the teaser's viewership ranks second behind a teaser for Incredibles 2 (114 million).

Release
Lightyear is scheduled to be theatrically released in the United States on June 17, 2022 by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.