Toy Story Reviews: Our Verdicts on Every Movie

Six films are reviewed in release order, each with a short verdict and a note on who it suits. The series is five main films, directed by John Lasseter (the first two), Lee Unkrich, Josh Cooley and Andrew Stanton, plus the 2022 spin-off Lightyear. For the full run in sequence, see toy story movies in order, and for the whole series at a glance, start at the toy story movies hub.

A Toy Story film works when its relationships change, and a single score cannot show that. The most useful verdict explains why a film lands or misses, so the relationships come first: Woody and Buzz, the toys and their kid, and how each film lets those bonds change. If you only want a quick order of preference, the toy story movies ranked page does that job.

Toy Story 1995, directed by John Lasseter, is the first feature film made entirely with computer animation, according to Disney's D23. It is a jealousy story at heart: Woody, voiced by Tom Hanks, is Andy's favorite, until Buzz Lightyear, voiced by Tim Allen, arrives believing he is a real space ranger. At 81 minutes it is the shortest of the six, and it is rated G in the US. Verdict (opinion): the best place to start, for children and for adults who want to see where the whole saga began.

Toy Story 2, directed by John Lasseter, began as a direct to video project before it became a theatrical release, as Animation World Network reported. The collector Al McWhiggin steals Woody, and Buzz and a few of Andy's other toys set out to get him back while Woody meets Jessie (Joan Cusack) and the Prospector (Kelsey Grammer). Sarah McLachlan sings When She Loved Me, which in my opinion is one of the series' best songs. Verdict (opinion): this is where the saga finds its heart, and it is rated G.

Toy Story 3, directed by Lee Unkrich, finds Andy at 17 and heading to college, with his toys unsure where they belong. A mix-up sends them to Sunnyside Daycare, and Ned Beatty voices Lotso. It grossed about $1.07 billion worldwide. Verdict (opinion): a film about growing up, and I think parents will feel it more than their children. It is rated G in the US and Australia, and U in the UK.

Toy Story 4, directed by Josh Cooley, moves the toys to Bonnie's room, where she builds Forky (Tony Hale) out of a spork. Woody follows him on a road trip and meets Bo Peep (Annie Potts) again, with Keanu Reeves joining as Duke Caboom. It could be argued that this is the funniest of the main films, thanks to Forky, Ducky and Bunny. Verdict (opinion): a warm, quick moving watch for the whole family, rated G in the US.

Lightyear, directed by Angus MacLane, is the spin-off of the series. Chris Evans voices Buzz, and the story strands his crew on the planet T'Kani Prime, where each test flight costs years because of time dilation. Michael Giacchino wrote the score. It is rated PG in the US, UK and Australia. Verdict (opinion): watch it as a space adventure, not as the next Toy Story, and do not start the series here.

Toy Story 5, directed by Andrew Stanton, brings in Lilypad (Greta Lee), a frog shaped tablet that pulls Bonnie away from her toys. Joan Cusack's Jessie is first in the cast list and sets out to win Bonnie back, with Tom Hanks and Tim Allen returning as Woody and Buzz. It is PG in the US and UK and G in Australia. Verdict (opinion): a good, timely family film.

Yes, in my opinion, Toy Story 5 is good, and the strongest reason is its premise. Toys competing with a screen is a worry parents already have, and the film puts it in a story children can follow. Randy Newman returns as composer, and Taylor Swift's song I Knew It, I Knew You is on the soundtrack (see the toy story soundtrack). If you want to see how audiences responded, the toy story box office page sets the grosses side by side.

The first four main films are rated G in the US, and Lightyear and Toy Story 5 are rated PG, but ratings describe general audiences and not toddlers. I would pick one of the G films and watch it together the first time. Toy Story (1995) is the shortest at 81 minutes, which helps with small attention spans. For where each one streams, see where to watch toy story.

Toy Story was a hit, and the numbers are not close. According to Box Office Mojo, Toy Story (1995) earned about $401 million worldwide and Toy Story 2 about $497 million. The Numbers lists the budget of Toy Story (1995) at $30 million, and Toy Story 2 cost $90 million. Toy Story 3 and Toy Story 4 each passed $1 billion, and Toy Story 5 reached about $1.15 billion worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo, against a $250 million budget, according to The Numbers. The exception is Lightyear, with about $226 million against $200 million.

Toy Story shorts and TV specials are not theatrical features, so they are not reviewed as films. The short that screened with Toy Story 2 is Luxo Jr., which opened Toy Story 2 in US theaters on November 24, 1999, according to Animation World Network.

No release date, greenlight or production status has been reported for toy story 6, and trade coverage treats a sixth film as a possibility, not an announced project. Dates on fan sites are unsourced. Until a studio or trade paper says otherwise, there is nothing to review. Meanwhile, the characters have their own pages, from woody toy story to buzz lightyear and jessie toy story, and the toy story characters index lists the rest.