Toy Story 5 Opens to Glowing First Reactions

The early word on Toy Story 5 is good. Really good.

First reactions from critics and audiences have come in largely positive, with the film drawing praise for its humor, emotional depth, and a story that actually has something to say about kids, screens, and what happens when technology fills the space that play used to occupy.

Pixar veteran Andrew Stanton takes the director’s chair this time, his first time directing in the franchise after writing credits on all four previous films. The guy behind Finding Nemo and Wall-E knows how to make you feel things you weren’t expecting to feel, and early reactions suggest he brought that same instinct here.

Jessie at the Center

The biggest shift in Toy Story 5 is putting Jessie front and center. Joan Cusack’s cowgirl has always been a supporting player, but this entry gives her the lead, and the emotional weight that comes with it. She has been owned by three different kids across the franchise. Three times of being loved. Three times of being left.

That history is what the film leans into. The technology angle, built around a new AI companion named Lilypad voiced by Greta Lee, gives Jessie a reason to confront what she has been carrying for decades.

What Early Reactions Are Saying

Viewers who caught early screenings called it the most emotionally affecting Pixar film in years. The humor lands, Buzz delivers most of the laughs, and Randy Newman’s score brings the tears right on cue. The consensus is that Stanton found the right balance between the franchise’s signature heart and a storyline that feels genuinely current.

Woody steps back in this one. That was always going to be a risk. Based on the reaction, it paid off.

Toy Story 5 is now showing.