Hamm Toy Story: Who Voices Him and Where He Appears

Hamm is a supporting toy character in the Toy Story saga, voiced by John Ratzenberger and credited as Hamm (voice) in the first three films. Ratzenberger is credited in Toy Story (1995), directed by John Lasseter, in Toy Story 2 (1999), also directed by Lasseter, and in Toy Story 3 (2010), directed by Lee Unkrich.

The billing order shows where he sits in the ensemble. In the first film he is sixth, right behind Wallace Shawn's Rex. In the second he is eighth, and in the third he is sixth again. That is the position of a favorite supporting player, someone the audience recognizes straight away without the story needing to lean on him.

If you are new to the series, think of Hamm as one of the regulars in a long running television comedy, the sort of character you expect to see whenever the main cast gathers. He shares the cast list with Woody, voiced by Tom Hanks, and Buzz Lightyear, voiced by Tim Allen, in every film where he appears.

People searching for Hamm usually want to know who plays him and which films carry his credit. The answers are John Ratzenberger and the first three films, with no Hamm credit among the top fifteen voices of the fourth or fifth.

Hamm's closest ties in the credits are to the other long standing toys in Andy's room, above all Rex, voiced by Wallace Shawn, and Mr. Potato Head, voiced by Don Rickles. Rickles, Shawn and Ratzenberger are credited in all three of the first films, and in the third their billing is consecutive (fourth, fifth and sixth). Jim Varney's Slinky Dog sits in the same part of the cast list in the first two films, and in the third Blake Clark takes over as Slinky Dog.

The leaders of the room are Woody, voiced by Tom Hanks, and Buzz Lightyear, voiced by Tim Allen. His other relationships belong to the people. Andy, voiced by John Morris in the first three films, is the owner whose attention shapes the toys' lives, and Bonnie, voiced by Emily Ricks in the third film, becomes the new owner at its close.

Newer arrivals add to the circle. Jessie, voiced by Joan Cusack, joins the room at the end of the second film. Barbie, voiced by Jodi Benson, and Ken, voiced by Michael Keaton, are credited alongside him in the third. The saga is really about a family of toys who stay together as the children grow up, and Hamm's credits tie him to that family across three films.

In my opinion, Hamm is best appreciated through the group scenes of the films he is credited in, and those are among the strongest in the saga. Perhaps that is the point of a character who sits sixth in the billing: a cast that deep makes the room feel crowded and alive.

The first moment I would pick is the worry at the start of Toy Story (1995), when the toys realize that a birthday gift could replace one of them. It works because it is a whole room reacting. The second is the rescue in Toy Story 2 (1999), where Buzz and Andy's other toys cross town to bring Woody back. It could be argued that a rescue only matters if there are enough friends to make the effort feel like a family decision.

The third is the Toy Story 3 farewell, when Andy gives his toys to Bonnie and takes a last moment to play with them. It is the closest the saga comes to a final curtain call, and Hamm is credited in the film. That being said, if you want a Hamm focused evening, the honest advice is to watch the trilogy in sequence and listen for John Ratzenberger. For the parent choosing tonight's film, all three of those films carry a G rating in the US.