I dream of the day when I can just enjoy the movie Lightyear without having to hear someone yelling about how it should have been Tim Allen voicing Buzz. 1. No, it shouldn’t have. That makes no sense for what the movie is setting up in the world of Toy Story, and 2. Tim Allen’s Buzz Lightyear could never be as hot as Chris Evans’ Buzz Lightyear. Those are just the facts! We’ve already had Allen’s response to the casting, where he seems to insult director and writer Angus MacLane in one breath, and now his Toy Story franchise costar, Tom Hanks, is speaking about the movie.
America’s dad has taken a more poised response and hasn’t exactly bashed the movie that he seemingly hasn’t seen, but Hanks said the following to CinemaBlend: “How about that? Actually, I wanted to go head-to-head with Tim Allen and then they didn’t let Tim Allen do it. I don’t understand that. Here’s the thing – just as long as people come back to the motion picture theater. I want to go back in the theater with a bunch of strangers and leave with something in common. That’s what I want to do and, going to see a movie with him [Allen] – I’m looking forward to that.”
So, he basically just made an offhand comment about how he and Tim Allen would be able to have a little friendly movie competition if he’d been in Lightyear, since Hanks’ Elvis is out now, but that didn’t happen because Allen wasn’t Buzz. Okay! Hanks isn’t knocking down the movie; he’s clearly supporting his “friend” in this and just … doesn’t know what’s going on because he’s not involved, but it’s just part of a larger, frustrating conversation that has been happening since the casting was announced and, now, a full month after the movie was released.
STOP THIS NONSENSE. THE CASTING OF CHRIS EVANS MAKES SENSE.
Do I seem angry and irrational? It’s because I am. If I have to see one more person out there talking about how it should have been Tim Allen in Lightyear rather than Chris Evans, I’m going to rip my hair out. I’m sorry, but could Tim Allen make course-correcting a ship with his thighs work in the way that Chris Evans’ performance did? NO! But in all seriousness, it’s a larger commentary on how franchises to cartoons to toys work.
When you buy an Iron Man doll, it is not Robert Downey Jr.’s voice in the toy. So Robert Downey Jr. would not, in turn, be the voice of an Iron Man toy in Toy Story. To use Chris Evans as an example, if you hold up a Steve Rogers or Johnny Storm doll, you don’t hear that Boston accent talking to you. It’s just not how that industry works.
So, having Tim Allen play Buzz Lightyear in the “live-action” movie from Andy’s childhood, within the Toy Story universe, makes absolutely no sense. So if you think it makes “no sense” that it wasn’t Tim Allen, you’re wrong! Just … actually wrong! What this all boils down to is everyone refusing to look up anything about this movie or even see this movie and make an educated statement on why it isn’t Tim Allen. Because if you watched Lightyear and your take away was “Huh, this should have been Tim Allen,” you’re missing the entire point of the movie and larger commentary it is making.
Anyway, Chris Evans made me enjoy Buzz Lightyear, so take that as you will.
(featured image: Pixar)
