Tom Hanks Responds To Tim Allen Being Replaced As Buzz Lightyear
Tom Hanks and Tim Allen held some of the most iconic roles in Disney films, and now Hanks has responded to Allen not being asked to voice Buzz Lightyear again.
No one quite knew how much controversy a Pixar movie could be involved in, and that is certainly the case for Lightyear. One of the biggest talking points was that the film was going to feature the first same-sex kiss, which caused all kinds of people to be upset with Disney. Then, Tim Allen not being asked to reprise his iconic role as Buzz Lightyear caused a bunch of negative publicity. Honestly, it’s a movie that went in a different direction and it needs to be treated as such. However, now Tom Hanks has responded to the latter controversy. According to the actor, “How about that? I actually wanted to go head-to-head with Tim Allen and then they didn’t let Tim Allen do it. I don’t understand that.”
What Tom Hanks is referring to is that his big movie is out now, which is the Elvis biopic. Hanks is playing Colonel Tom Parker, who was the businessman that some viewed as the villain in Elvis’s life. Lightyear also dropped at the same time, but without Tim Allen, which is what has confused Hanks along with many other people. Chris Evans had been asked to voice the character, and he honestly did a good job. The issue is that the film had nothing to do with the toy, which is something Allen alluded to when he had been asked about his lack of involvement. According to Allen, “This is a whole new team that really had nothing to do with the first movies.” He is certainly right, as the Toy Story franchise ended in 2019, leaving this new Lightyear film to be something completely different entirely.
Quite honestly, having both Tom Hanks and Tim Allen back in one of their most iconic roles would be great, but it’s time to move on from that franchise. Lightyear was something different to try. Reboots and remakes are the way of the world currently, and sometimes those story rehashes don’t work out. That is not necessarily the case for Lightyear, as it has favorable reviews, though its box office numbers are low for being a Pixar film. Still, it might seem like a bit of blasphemy that Allen was not considered for the role.
We get why so many people are upset that Tim Allen had not been asked to voice Buzz again. We reported three weeks ago that a Sheriff Woody movie is also in development, which will basically follow the same style as Lightyear. However, should Tom Hanks not get the call to reprise his role, that will upset plenty of people as well. So, we get why Hanks and the Toy Story-loving world have been scratching their heads about Allen not returning. But again, this was a chance to do something different, and Pixar took it. As they say, “fortune favors the bold.”
Lightyear is currently in theaters, and fans can go see Chris Evans take on the role of Buzz Lightyear. You can decide if Tim Allen was the person that should have been called, or if Evans did fine in this new reimagining of the character. We get why people are upset, but it’s just something different. However, we might feel a bit more upset if Tom Hanks isn’t called to voice Sheriff Woody.
