Toy Story 4 Is Going to Be Huge: Sequel Expected to Open to Franchise-Best $150 Million
Woody and the gang might make their biggest splash yet at the box office.
Toy Story 4, set to hit theaters June 21, is reportedly tracking for a huge $150 million opening, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The number would put the fourth installment in the series above 2010’s Toy Story 3, which pulled in $110.3 million on opening weekend.
Toy Story 4 reunites all the old cast, including Tom Hanks as Woody and Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear. Also returning is the late Don Rickles, who voiced Mr. Potato Head in the first three movies. The legendary comedian will still star as the fan-favorite character thanks to inventive reuse of old voiceovers, director Josh Cooley recently revealed.
The Pixar movie is one of a few lucrative titles hitting theaters this summer for Disney. Avengers: Endgame kicked things off in late April with a staggering $1.2 billion worldwide on opening weekend, while the live-action remake of Aladdin pulled in $113 million in North America.
After Toy Story 4, Disney is set to make bank with the Lion King, which is projected to bow to a $180-$200 million debut over the July 19 weekend, according to Box Office magazine.
On Wednesday’s episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Hanks revealed that his costar Allen warned him about the emotional ending of the film before he went in to record his lines.
The Forrest Gump actor then described feeling “self-conscious” while recording in front of the producers and writers.
“There’s like five producers, writers, people who are helping you out and they’re all sitting at tables looking at you record like, ‘Hmm, that was pretty good, but what if we try…’ It was making me self-conscious so for the last couple of sessions I turned my back on those punks and did it without them,” Hanks said.
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The actor continued: “Also because this is the end of the series and I had gotten some texts from Tim Allen… these texts that say, ‘Have you recorded yet? Have you been in? Have you had a session yet?’”
“I said, ‘No, not yet,’” Hanks said, revealing that Allen told him, “‘Wait until you see those last pages. Tough one, tough one.’”
“And it was!” Hanks revealed. “The last few sessions — we’re saying goodbye to Woody and Buzz and Bonnie’s room and Andy and everybody. So I had to turn my back on them all.”
