FILM · 1999 · USA
Toy Story 2
- Directed by
- John Lasseter
- Runtime
- 92 min
- Studio
- Pixar
238 archived facts 8 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
Andy heads off to Cowboy Camp, leaving his toys to their own devices. Things shift into high gear when an obsessive toy collector named Al McWhiggen, owner of Al's Toy Barn kidnaps Woody. Andy's toys mount a daring rescue mission, Buzz Lightyear meets his match and Woody has to decide where he and his heart truly belong.
238 Interesting Facts About Toy Story 2
Interesting Facts (101)
- #001
- #002
As Hamm flips through channels trying to find the Al's Toy Barn commercial, every other station shows clips from the short films and commercials Pixar had produced over the years, including Luxo Jr. (1986), Red's Dream (1987), Tin Toy (1988) and Knick Knack (1989). There is also a logo for the NeXT computer developed by Pixar's then-CEO Steve Jobs, along with several clips from some of the Pixar television commercials they made and a brief glimpse of Pixar's old logo.
- #003
There was some debate over the song "When She Loved Me" and its place in the film. Randy Newman voiced concerns about whether young children could sit through the end of the three-minute ballad, while both Tim Allen and Tom Hanks admitted they were reduced to tears by the scene featuring the song.
- #004
As the group walks through Al's Toy Barn, Buzz Lightyear heads down an aisle. Tour Guide Barbie tells them, "Back in 1995 short-sighted retailers did not order enough dolls to meet demand." This is both a joke and a fact: when the original Toy Story (1995) was released, toy retailers did not think the film would be a success and indeed did not order enough dolls to meet demand. The joke is also a self-deprecating dig at Mattel Toys, which had refused to license the Barbie character for the first film because it thought the film would be a flop.
- #005
While working on the film, someone entered a line of code called rm *, which deletes everything on the computer as quickly as possible. As a result, the film's creators lost ninety percent of the film. The animators tried to retrieve the backup animation, but it did not work. Fortunately, technical director Galyn Susman had recently had a baby and had taken a copy of the film home so she could work from home. They wrapped the extra copy in blankets and carried it back to the studio, managing to save most of the film. Susman was laid off from Pixar in 2023.
- #006
- #007
In Al's Toy Barn behind Rex, one of the items present before he and Mr. Potato Head get into Barbie's car is a pink teddy bear that had previously appeared as one of the silent toys on the shelf during the staff meeting in Toy Story (1995) (this actually formed the basis for Lotso in Toy Story 3 (2010)).
- #008
- #009
Contains a major spoiler — show
When Woody first sees the "Woody's Finest Hour" tape, he is stopped in the middle of a cliff and Stinky Pete tells him that "Woody's Roundup" was cancelled before the outcome aired. This is the same tape Woody plays for the others who come to rescue him, except that he does not pause it. After Buzz asks the Armor-Piercing Question and leaves, the outcome of "Woody's Finest Hour" can be heard: Woody succeeds in crossing the valley and rescues the others. He is faintly heard asking whether everyone is all right, and Jessie is heard shouting with relief, "Sheriff Woody! I knew you'd make it!" Woody is heard more clearly giving clever words to the children on TV and then singing "You've Got a Friend in Me." In other words, with the revelation that Stinky Pete lied, his villainy is implied before it is ever shown.
- #010
- #011
- #012
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- #016
During the opening title sequence (when the Walt Disney Pictures logo is shown), the lamp that is Pixar Animation Studios' trademark (from Luxo Jr. (1986)) can be seen as a constellation among the stars in the upper right corner of the screen. Andy's red lamp, a colored version of it, also reappears in the first film, as does Andy's Mickey Mouse "watch" clock.
- #017
One of the inspirations for this sequel was the times John Lasseter traveled with his wife and children. When they got off the plane and into the airport, Lasseter saw a small boy holding a Woody doll and showing it to his father. Lasseter immediately realized that his characters belonged not just to him but to everyone. When he watches the film, Lasseter always thinks of that little boy.
- #018
- #019
- #020
- #021
Many people think the "Woody's Roundup" series was shot with real puppets. But in fact they took the same CG models and made small changes so they would look like puppets. They then animated the puppet versions of the characters on a CG black-and-white set. They then added scratches, hairs and grain particles to the image, using this technique called the kinescope effect, which makes the image look old.
- #022
- #023
- #024
Contains a major spoiler — show
When Woody and Jessie get off the plane, Jessie was originally going to be the one who slips and Woody was going to save her, but Joan Cusack (the voice of Jessie) suggested to the director and writers that Jessie should save Woody instead, to show her character's bravery and strength. John Lasseter and everyone else liked the idea so much that it was approved.
- #025
- #026
Al the toy collector is partly based on Mark Luhn, the father of Pixar animator and storyboard artist Matthew Luhn, who owned a toy store and was a collector. A group of animators followed Mark Luhn around for days to study his mannerisms and learn about his toy collection. They also took references from the "Jeffrey's Toys" store in San Francisco.
- #027
- #028
- #029
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the original story for the direct-to-video sequel, the "Woody's Roundup" toys Woody meets in Al's apartment included Bullseye (who had a voice and could talk), the Prospector (unnamed), and the Mexican dancer doll Senorita Cactus. The Prospector and Senorita Cactus were snobbish "collector's item" characters who looked down on Woody for having previously belonged to a child and been played with. The film's ending included a car chase in which Woody, Buzz and the rest of Andy's toys stole Al's car to escape, and Al chased them in the "Pizza Planet" truck (the reverse of what happens in the finished film). When production of the sequel returned to Pixar, John Lasseter and other Pixar animators reworked the story, added the cowgirl Jessie, and expanded certain scenes (e.g. the visit to Al's Toy Barn) to bring more heart and humor to the story.
- #030
- #031
- #032
- #033
- #034
Contains a major spoiler — show
Buzz telling Woody "You. Are. A toy!" in Al's apartment is a reference to the first film, when Woody told Buzz the same thing while Buzz believed he was a real space ranger at the gas station. The filmmakers initially wanted Tim Allen to imitate Tom Hanks's line (YOU! ARE! A! TOY!) to mirror the original scene exactly, but they realized it was too dramatic in this context.
- #035
- #036
- #037
- #038
- #039
- #040
In the closing section of the credits, Stinky Pete (voiced by Kelsey Grammer) dismisses two Barbie dolls with the line "off you go then." This is the catchphrase of Dr. Frasier Crane, another famous Kelsey Grammer character, from Cheers (1982), in which Pixar legend John Ratzenberger also appeared.
- #041
- #042
Contains a major spoiler — show
When Buzz leaves the new Buzz behind with Emperor Zurg (before he and the other toys head to the airport to rescue Woody), he departs giving a Vulcan salute (from Star Trek), similar to what he did to Woody in the first film before the Pizza Planet truck arrived at the Dinoco gas station.
- #043
- #044
- #045
- #046
- #047
- #048
- #049
- #050
The bonus disc of the 2000 Ultimate Toy Box Collection DVD release, the bonus disc of the 2005 DVD release and the bonus disc of the Blu-ray release include two deleted scenes: * The original version of the scene in which the toys cross the street. It was originally set in the suburbs of the town, but was later changed to a street in the town. * The toys play something like "Godzilla," in which Rex roars and kicks over some houses, the soldiers "evacuate" the other toys and Buzz fights Godzilla Rex. Because of Rex's clumsiness, Woody is thrown out the window and lands in a box left over from a yard sale. Because this seemed too coincidental, it was changed and rewritten into the scene seen in theaters.
- #051
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- #058
Betty White, Doris Roberts, Marcia Wallace, Carol Burnett, Cloris Leachman and Florence Henderson were all considered for Mrs. Potato Head before Estelle Harris was cast, though White and Burnett would later appear in Toy Story 4 (2019), voicing Bitey White and President Burnett respectively.
- #059
In the scene where the toys enter Al's Toy Barn, the viewpoint comes from above and behind the toys as they walk slowly into the dim, cave-like space (from the toys' perspective). In a sequence that strongly recalls the final shot of Raiders of the Lost Ark, the camera slowly pulls back to a much wider shot as the toys look around the vast space, much as the Ark of the Covenant is carried into a dim, cavernous warehouse to be hidden away forever.
- #060
- #061
- #062
- #063
When the toys reach the building where Al lives, across from Al's Toy Barn, the elevator's highest point is shown to be the 23rd floor. If you look closely, you will notice there is no 13th floor. Many hotels, apartment buildings and skyscrapers omit the 13th floor because of superstition. The elevator in the film goes from the 12th floor to the 14th. Therefore, since Al's apartment is on the 23rd floor, it is actually only 22 floors up.
- #064
- #065
- #066
Zurg sees a running Buzz Lightyear with crosshairs in his head-mounted targeting scope ("LOOK HERE"). This recalls a nearly identical feature of Marx's 1963 giant toy robot "Big Loo," now a collector's item. And just like Zurg, Big Loo had a plastic-ball-firing weapon (though mounted on his left arm), glowing red eyes and equally impressive teeth.
- #067
- #068
- #069
Contains a major spoiler — show
Stinky Pete is Pixar's first villain who is not revealed as evil from the start. In other words, when Stinky Pete is first introduced, he is initially shown to be on the side of good, but he later reveals his true face by showing that he is the film's real main antagonist; this even confirms the idea that the one thought to be the main villain (Al McWiggin) is a secondary antagonist.
- #070
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- #075
The commercial in which Al cries over losing his fortune was shown the morning after Woody and the other toys returned to Andy's house. Because Japan is far from the Tri-County Area, Al would never have returned from Japan that next morning. (The DVD commentary acknowledges this but states they only wanted to show that Al got what he deserved.)
- #076
- #077
The fictional show Woody's Roundup appears to have been inspired by the 1960s TV puppet series Four Feather Falls (1960). When that series ended, its creator Gerry Anderson moved on to the sci-fi puppet series Supercar (1961) and Fireball XL5 (1962); the latter was a space adventure series made after the space race craze, paralleling the fact that Woody's Roundup was cancelled after the popularity of space programs following the launch of Sputnik.
- #078
- #079
- #080
In the scene where the toys walk down the Buzz Lightyear aisle, Tour Guide Barbie says: "Back in 1995, shortsighted retailers did not order enough dolls to meet demand." This line is actually based on a real fact. When Toy Story (1995) was released in 1995, store owners underestimated sales of Buzz Lightyear toys because they had also underestimated the film's box office performance. Of all the dolls bought by toy stores in the US and Canada, they ordered only 60,000 Buzz Lightyear toys, while the company producing them manufactured over 9 million toys.
- #081
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- #083
Contains a major spoiler — show
Zurg, who falls down the elevator shaft shouting "NO!", mirrors a similar scene in Masters of the Universe (1987) in which Skeletor (Frank Langella) shouts "NO!" as he falls into a bottomless pit. Masters of the Universe (1987) is based on Mattel's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe toy line.
- #084
- #085
When Barbie tells the other toys in the car to "remain seated please," she says it in Spanish, the "permanezcan sentados por favor" announcement played at the end of the Matterhorn ride at Disneyland in California. Because the group is from Anaheim, where Disneyland is located, it is also heard at the end of No Doubt's album "Tragic Kingdom."
- #086
In the final scene, where Jessie slides down the ramp on the toy car to open the door for Buster, Buzz opens his wings to emphasize his excitement. The blinking red and green lights on the wingtips are somewhat consistent with the navigation lights on real aircraft, which have a red light on the left wing and a green light on the right. However, the lights alternate rather than blinking simultaneously as they do in real life.
- #087
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- #090
Contains a major spoiler — show
The scene in which Woody and Jessie make their way toward the nose gear bay and jump from the plane as it takes off closely resembles a scene near the beginning of Commando (1985), in which Arnold Schwartzenegger jumps from the nose gear of a plane about to take off.
- #091
- #092
- #093
The city in the Toy Story films is a fictional, unnamed place in the United States, but many clues point to a setting in the San Francisco Bay Area. The region is called the "Tri-County Area" in the films, inspired by the real-world Tri-Valley region of Northern California. The filmmakers based some aspects of the film's landscape on the area and used it as inspiration, including Emeryville (where Pixar is located). The address of Al's Toy Barn, "1001 West Cutting Boulevard," is a real street in Richmond, California, where the original Pixar Studios were located.
- #094
This was Estelle Harris's first voice role in a film released in theaters. She went on to reprise the role of Mrs. Potato Head in the other Toy Story sequels, as well as voicing Old Lady Bear in Brother Bear (2003), Mrs. Boogin in Teacher's Pet (2004) and Chicken Audrey in Home on the Range (2004).
- #095
This was Joan Cusack's first voice role in a film released in theaters. She went on to reprise the role of Jessie in the other Toy Story sequels, as well as voicing Abby Mallard, the Ugly Duckling, in Chicken Little (2005), the Witch Verushka in Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil (2011), the head elves in Arthur Christmas (2011) and Sock Mouse Madame Curie in Toys in the Attic (2009).
- #096
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- #100
Irony: Al McWhiggin's tearful commercial at the end of the film is the result of a comical legal trap. Because Al lost his priceless luggage, he could technically sue the airport or the airline, but doing so would carry enormous risk. To win a lawsuit or an insurance claim, Al would have to prove he owned the items. That investigation would immediately reveal that he had stolen Woody from Andy's yard sale earlier in the film. To avoid a prison sentence for grand theft, Al had no choice but to accept the financial ruin that ended in the "everything's a buck" liquidation sale.
- #101
When Woody sneaks out to retrieve his arm while Al is asleep, he must be careful not to step on the cheese puffs, or he will wake Al. This mirrors the scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark in which Indiana Jones, inside a temple in South America to take a Golden Idol, must not step on a sinking stone, which would trigger a trap that fires darts at him.
Production Story (103)
- #102
- #103
According to Jessie and Pete, Woody's Roundup was cancelled before the episode showing the outcome of Woody and Bullseye rushing to rescue Jessie and Pete from the mines. After Andy's toys leave Woody at Al's apartment, when Woody says he won't go back with them, the audio of that supposedly nonexistent episode can be heard in the background, with Jessie thanking Woody for rescuing them, revealing that Pete lied to Jessie about the series being cancelled (at least at that point in its run) and led her to believe that she and the rest of the gang were instantly forgotten when Space Race began.
- #104
- #105
There was some debate over the song "When She Loved Me" and its place in the film. Randy Newman voiced concerns about whether small children would be able to sit through the end of the three-minute ballad, while both Tim Allen and Tom Hanks admitted they were reduced to tears by the scene featuring the song.
- #106
While working on the film, someone entered a command called rm *, and when this command is entered it deletes everything on the computer in the shortest possible time. As a result, the film's creators lost ninety percent of the film. The animators tried to retrieve the backup animation but it did not work. Fortunately, technical director Galyn Susman had recently had a baby and had taken a copy of the film home so she could work from home. They wrapped the extra copy in blankets and took it back to the studio, managing to save most of the film. Susman was laid off from Pixar in 2023.
- #107
In the scene at Al's Toy Barn where Rex holds the book How to Defeat Zurg in the car, there is a frame in which the bottom corner of the book is clearly visible. As a light joke at Canadians, the cover price is shown as $4.95 in Canada and $50.00. It should be about $6.95. In the waiting area of the new "Toy Story Mania!" ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida, there is a large copy of the book's cover that reflects this same joke.
- #108
- #109
In Al's Toy Barn behind Rex, one of the items present before he and Mr. Potato Head get into Barbie's car is a pink teddy bear that had previously appeared as one of the silent toys on the shelf during the staff meeting in Toy Story (1995) (this in fact formed the basis for Lotso in Toy Story 3 (2010)).
- #110
- #111
The scene in which Woody, Buzz and Bullseye chase the baggage tractor to rescue Jessie resembles a typical western film scene in which the hero chases a train on horseback. In fact, because the first trailer after the tractor is open-topped, it was given the appearance of a steam locomotive.
- #112
When Woody first sees the "Woody's Finest Hour" tape, it is stopped in the middle of a cliffhanger and Stinky Pete says that "Woody's Roundup" was cancelled before the outcome aired. This is the same tape Woody plays for the others who come to rescue him, the only difference being that he had not paused it. After Buzz asks his Armor-Piercing Question and leaves, the outcome of "Woody's Finest Hour" can be heard: Woody manages to cross the valley and saves the others. He can be heard softly asking if everyone is all right, and Jessie can be heard shouting in relief, "Sheriff Woody! I knew you'd make it!" Woody can be heard more clearly saying wise words to the children on TV and then singing "You've Got a Friend in Me." In other words, with the revelation that Stinky Pete lied, his villainy was implied before it was ever shown.
- #113
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- #116
One of the inspirations for this sequel was the times John Lasseter traveled with his wife and children. When they got off the plane and into the airport, Lasseter saw a little boy holding a Woody doll in his hand and showing it to his father. Lasseter immediately realized that his characters were not just his characters, but everyone's. When he watches the film, Lasseter always thinks of that little boy.
- #117
- #118
Many people think the "Woody's Roundup" series was shot with real puppets. But in fact they took the same CG models and made small changes to make them look like puppets. They then animated puppet versions of the characters on a CG black-and-white set. They then used this technique, called the kinescope effect, adding scratches, hairs and grain particles to the image to make it look old.
- #119
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- #122
When Woody and Jessie get off the plane, the one who was originally going to slip was Jessie, with Woody saving her, but Joan Cusack (who voices Jessie) suggested to the director and writers that Jessie should save Woody, so as to show her character's courage and strength. John Lasseter and everyone else liked it so much that the idea was approved.
- #123
- #124
The video game's opening scenes contain various references to the Star Wars films: - The robot scanning device that bursts from the rock surface resembled the guard droid of Jabba the Hutt's palace in Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983). - Buzz's passage through the tunnel in Zurg's fortress, and the tunnel closing behind him when the spiked wall trap moves aside, are taken from Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980). - Zurg's line "So, we meet again, Buzz Lightyear, for the last time!" is another rendering of what Darth Vader says to Obi-Wan Kenobi shortly before dueling him in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977). This also occurs during the encounter with the Zurg toy in the elevator shaft of Al's real-world apartment. This line also appears in Mel Brooks's Spaceballs, between Lord Helmet and Lonestar before their final battle.
- #125
At the end of the film, as the credits roll, some of the scenes included are accompanied by 'outtakes.' The first of these, his trouble with the tape reel, is a reference to the famous scene in "The Money Pit" in which Tom Hanks's character gets stuck in the floor and it leads to uncontrollable laughter.
- #126
The toy collector Al is based in part on Mark, the father of Pixar animator and storyboard artist Matthew Luhn, who was a toy store owner and collector. A group of animators followed Mark Luhn for days to study his mannerisms and learn about his toy collection. They also took references from the "Jeffrey's Toys" store in San Francisco.
- #127
- #128
As the toys cross the road, Slinky Dog says: "I'm not a smart dog, but I know what roadkill is." This is a reference to a quote from the title character of "Forrest Gump (1994)": "I'm not a smart man, but I know what love is." Both Forrest Gump and Sheriff Woody are played by Tom Hanks.
- #129
In the original story of the direct-to-video sequel, among the "Woody's Roundup" toys Woody meets in Al's apartment were Bullseye (who had a voice and could talk), the Prospector (unnamed) and the Mexican dancer doll Senorita Cactus. The Prospector and Senorita Cactus were snobbish "collector's item" characters who looked down on Woody for having previously belonged to a child and been played with. The film's ending included a car chase in which Woody, Buzz and the rest of Andy's toys steal Al's car to escape, and Al pursues them in the "Pizza Planet" truck (the reverse of what happens in the finished film). When production of the sequel returned to Pixar, John Lasseter and the other Pixar animators reworked the story, added the cowgirl Jessie, and expanded certain scenes (e.g. Al's visit to the Toy Barn) to add more heart and humor to the story.
- #130
- #131
Buzz telling Woody "You. Are. A toy!" in Al's apartment is a nod to the first film, when Woody tells Buzz this while Buzz believes he is a real space ranger at the fuel station. The filmmakers initially wanted Tim Allen to imitate Tom Hanks's line (YOU! ARE! A! TOY!) to mirror the original scene exactly, but they realized it was too dramatic in this context.
- #132
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- #135
In the closing section of the credits, Stinky Pete (voiced by Kelsey Grammer) dismisses two Barbie dolls with the phrase "off you go then." This is the catchphrase of Dr. Frasier Crane, another famous Kelsey Grammer character, from Cheers (1982), in which Pixar legend John Ratzenberger also appeared.
- #136
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- #138
When Buzz leaves with the new Buzz to join Emperor Zurg (before he and the other toys head to the airport to rescue Woody), he departs giving a Vulcan salute (from Star Trek), similar to what he did to Woody in the first film before the Pizza Planet Truck arrived at the Dinoco Gas Station.
- #139
The January 12, 1957 issue of Life magazine establishes the date when Woody's television popularity peaked. Woody's Roundup is clearly based on Howdy Doody, which ran from 1947 to 1960, and it peaks around 1955, roughly a year before Woody's Roundup reaches its height in its own universe. The magazine cover also features photographs of the first satellite, Sputnik. This appears to come from an alternate universe, because the Russians kept Sputnik a secret and did not announce it until they achieved a successful launch on October 4, 1957. In the Toy Story universe, the satellite was launched a year earlier than in the real universe. Life magazine's real story about Sputnik was published on October 21, 1957.
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The baggage handler who shouts "Hold it! There's a couple more bags coming from the terminal!" at the airport is the voice of British television star Andi Peters. While making the documentary about the making of Toy Story 2 (1999), he was offered this small line in the film by John Lasseter. The recording almost did not happen because Andi Peters did not have a work permit in the US, but he was allowed to record his dialogue from a London studio, which John Lasseter supervised via satellite.
- #145
In one of the scenes during the credits, Stinky Pete flirtatiously tells two Barbies, "You know, I'm sure I could get you a part in Toy Story 3 (2010)", a reference to Hollywood's long history of the "casting couch" practice. The scene was cut in 2019 following the emergence of the MeToo movement in 2017.
- #146
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- #149
The bonus disc of the 2000 Ultimate Toy Box Collection DVD release, the bonus disc of the 2005 DVD release and the bonus disc of the Blu-ray release include two deleted scenes: * The original version of the scene where the toys cross the street. It was initially set in the suburbs of the town, but was later changed to a street in the town. * The toys play something like "Godzilla," in which Rex roars and kicks over some houses, the soldiers "evacuate" the other toys and Buzz fights Godzilla Rex. Because of Rex's clumsiness, Woody is thrown out the window and lands in a box left over from a yard sale. Because this seemed too coincidental, it was changed and rewritten into the scene seen in theaters.
- #150
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There was controversy surrounding the film's release in the 'The Ultimate Toy Box' DVD set. During the set's release, the disc in 1,000 copies sent to Costco had a manufacturing error, and at one point during the film, a scene from Disney's Touchstone Pictures R-rated film High Fidelity (2000), in which the word 'f**k' is said many times, is unexpectedly spliced in. This led to a large number of complaints from both parents and people who bought the set. As a result, Costco recalled these copies and replaced them with the fixed set. According to Technicolor (the set's manufacturing company), they stated that the cause of the glitch was a 'content error,' and according to Disney itself, fewer than 1% of the discs sent contained the glitch.
- #153
- #154
In the scene where the toys enter Al's Toy Barn, the viewer's point of view comes from above and behind the toys as they slowly walk toward this dim, cavernous (from the toys' point of view) space. In a scene that strongly recalls the final shot of "Raiders of the Lost Ark," as the toys look around this enormous space, the camera slowly pulls back to a much wider shot while workers take the Ark of the Covenant in its crate to a dimly lit, cave-like warehouse to be hidden away forever.
- #155
- #156
According to Jessie and Pete, Woody's Roundup was cancelled before the episode showing the result of Woody and Bullseye rushing to rescue Jessie and Pete from the mines. After Andy's toys leave Woody at Al's apartment, when Woody tells them he won't come back with them, in the background can be heard the audio of the supposedly non-existent episode in which Jessie thanks Woody for rescuing them, revealing that Pete lied to Jessie about the series being cancelled (at least at the point it aired) and pushed her to believe that she and the rest of the gang were instantly forgotten once Space Race began.
- #157
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- #159
When the toys reach the building where Al lives, across from Al's Toy Barn, the elevator's highest point is shown to be the 23rd floor. If you look closely, you'll notice there is no 13th floor. Many hotels, apartment buildings and skyscrapers lack a 13th floor due to superstition. The elevator in the film goes from the 12th floor to the 14th. Therefore, since Al's apartment is on the 23rd floor, it is actually only 22 floors up.
- #160
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- #162
Zurg sees a running Buzz Lightyear with crosshairs in his head-mounted targeting scope ("LOOK HERE"). This recalls the nearly identical feature of Marx's 1963 giant toy robot "Big Loo," now a collector's item. And just like Zurg, Big Loo (though mounted on his left arm) had a plastic-ball-firing gun, glowing red eyes and equally impressive teeth.
- #163
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Just as in the first film, Buzz loses control and falls while trying to rescue Woody by climbing onto Al's car, then looks at the back of the car and sees the license plate reading "Nov" on the left and "99" on the right. This is a subtle reference to the film's final release date in November 1999.
- #166
- #167
In the scene where Buzz gives the other toys a motivational speech, the US flag and national anthem disappear in the background, and the scene then cuts to a television showing the same image. However, this version of the shot was used only in the film's North American release. For the worldwide release, the US flag was replaced by a rotating globe and fireworks, and the music was replaced by an original score.
- #168
Stinky Pete is the first Pixar villain who is not initially revealed to be evil. In other words, when Stinky Pete is first introduced, he is initially shown to be one of the good guys, but he would later reveal his true face by showing that he is the film's real main antagonist; even this confirms the idea that the one thought to be the main villain (Al McWiggin) is a secondary antagonist.
- #169
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Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation Studios initially wanted Joe Pesci to voice Stinky Pete, but Pesci had already retired from acting, and Kelsey Grammer was cast for the role of Stinky Pete. Pesci had also been considered to voice Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story (1995) but had likewise turned down the offer.
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The commercial in which Al cries over losing his fortune was shown the next morning, after Woody and the other toys had returned to Andy's house. Because Japan is far from the Tri-County Area, Al would never have returned from Japan the next morning. (The DVD Commentary acknowledges this but stated that they just wanted to show that Al got what he deserved.)
- #176
The inspiration for the fictional show Woody's Roundup appears to be based on the 1960s TV puppet show Western Four Feather Falls (1960). When that series ended, its creator Gerry Anderson moved on to the sci-fi puppet series Supercar (1961) and Fireball XL5 (1962); the latter series was a space adventure series made after the space race craze, paralleling the fact that Woody's Roundup was canceled after the popularity of space programs following the launch of Sputnik.
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- #180
In the scene where the toys walk down the Buzz Lightyear aisle, Tour Guide Barbie says the following line: "Back in 1995, shortsighted retailers did not order enough dolls to meet demand." This line is actually based on a real fact. When Toy Story (1995) was released in 1995, retailers underestimated sales of Buzz Lightyear toys because they also underestimated the film's box office performance. Of all the dolls purchased by toy stores in the US and Canada, they ordered only 60,000 Buzz Lightyear toys, while the company that produced them manufactured over 9 million toys.
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When Barbie tells the other toys in the car to "remain seated please," she says it in Spanish, the "permanezcan sentados por favor" announcement played at the end of the Matterhorn ride at Disneyland in California. Because the group is from Anaheim, where Disneyland is also located, it is also heard at the end of No Doubt's album "Tragic Kingdom."
- #183
In the final scene, where Jessie slides down the ramp on the toy car to open the door for Buster, Buzz opens his wings to emphasize his excitement. The flashing red and green lights on his wingtips are somewhat the same as the navigation lights on real aircraft, which have a red light on the left wing and a green light on the right wing. However, the lights alternate rather than flashing simultaneously as they do in real life.
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Stinky Pete actually ruined his own ambition of becoming an exhibit in Japan. Desperate to stop Woody from leaving, he abandoned his own box and screwed the bolts of the ventilation frame with his own pickaxe. And it is implied that he left his box the night he turned the television back on to stop Woody. This therefore means that, because of his recklessness, he is no longer a collectible, since all exhibits in the museum must be absolutely 100% in condition. Even the slightest opening of the container would cause the item to be considered worthless. And even if Al went to Tokyo with all his items, all the items would have to be inspected, and damage to or loss of even a single piece would mean the collection could not be accepted, which clearly explains why Al needed Woody's urgent repair from Geri. It could be argued that Pete was so determined to go to Japan that he did not realize that by abandoning his own box he was ruining his own dream.
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The city in the Toy Story films is a fictional, unnamed place in the United States, but many clues point to a setting in the San Francisco Bay Area. In the films, the area is referred to as the "Tri-County Area", inspired by the real-world Tri-Valley region of Northern California. The filmmakers based some aspects of the film's landscape on the region, using the area, including Emeryville (where Pixar is located), as inspiration. The address of Al's Toy Barn, "1001 West Cutting Boulevard", is a real street in Richmond, California, where the original Pixar Studios were located.
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Woody's emotional breakdown scene nearly did not make the final cut. Pixar executives were reportedly worried that the raw intensity of the moment in which Woody confronts the fact that he is a collectible and has potentially been forgotten by Andy was "too real" for young viewers. The scene reflected deep existential fear, sadness and the weight of loss in a way unusual for animated films aimed at children. Despite the initial concerns, the filmmakers ultimately kept the sequence, trusting that children could handle emotional complexity when it was presented thoughtfully. The scene blends humor, poignancy and visual storytelling, allowing audiences to empathize with Woody's panic without being overwhelmed. The result was one of the most memorable and powerful moments in the series. Woody's vulnerability gives the character depth and relatability, teaching viewers about loss, identity and the fear of being left behind. By keeping the scene, Pixar showed that animated films can confront real emotions head-on, a choice that continues to resonate with viewers of all ages.
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Irony: Al McWhiggin's tearful commercial at the end of the film is the result of a funny legal trap. While Al could technically sue the airport or the airline for losing his priceless luggage, doing so would create a huge risk. To win a lawsuit or an insurance claim, Al would have to prove that he owned the items. That investigation would immediately reveal that he stole Woody from Andy's yard sale early in the film. To avoid a prison sentence for grand larceny, Al had no choice but to accept the financial ruin that ended in the "everything's a buck" liquidation sale.
- #204
When Woody goes out to get his arm while Al is sleeping, he must be careful not to step on the cheese crackers, or he will wake Al. This mirrors the scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark in which Indiana Jones, inside a temple in South America to get a Golden Idol, must not step on a sinking stone, which would trigger a trap that fires darts at him.
Behind the Scenes (1)
- #205
There were problems with the film's release in 'The Ultimate Toy Box' DVD set. At the time of the set's release, the disc in 1,000 copies sent to Costco had a manufacturing error, and at one point during the film, a scene from Disney's Touchstone Pictures R-rated film High Fidelity (2000) in which the word 'f**k' is said many times unexpectedly cuts in. This led to numerous complaints from both parents and people who bought the set. As a result, Costco recalled these copies and replaced them with the fixed set. According to Technicolor (the set's manufacturing company), they stated that the cause of the glitch was a 'content error,' and according to Disney itself, fewer than 1% of the discs sent contained the glitch.
Characters & Cast (3)
- #206
The baggage handler at the airport who shouts "Hold it! There's a couple more bags coming from the terminal!" is voiced by British television star Andi Peters. While making a documentary about the production of Toy Story 2 (1999), he was offered this small line in the film by John Lasseter. The recording almost did not happen because Andi Peters did not have a work permit in the US, but he was allowed to record his dialogue from a London studio, with John Lasseter supervising via satellite.
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Easter Eggs & References (25)
- #209
In the scene at Al's Toy Barn where Rex holds the book How to Defeat Zurg in the car, there is a frame in which the bottom corner of the book is clearly visible. As a light joke at Canadians, the cover price is listed as $4.95 and $50.00 in Canada. It should be about $6.95. In the queue area of Disney's new "Toy Story Mania!" ride at Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida, there is a large copy of the book's cover that reflects this same joke.
- #210
The film contains various references to A Bug's Life (1998). In Andy's bedroom there is a wall calendar showing the film's ants standing on a leaf. Mrs. Potato Head reads an "A Bug's Life" book when Mr. Potato Head appears with the earring. The dog collar used as the center ring in P.T.'s Flea Circus was seen on the table at the Yard Sale when Al finds Woody. As Buzz passes through the karate bushes, the caterpillar Heimlich can be seen nibbling leaves. (Buzz cuts a branch, causing Heimlich to fall.) Before Buzz and the toys find Al's Toy Barn, the bug bar in Bug City can be seen in the bushes across the street. In Al's attic there is an abstracted version of a shot from "A Bug's Life." This shot is said to have been abstracted to prevent people from identifying it until they get the video version and look carefully. The moving boxes Al uses to pack the Woody's Roundup merchandise were the same boxes used to decorate Bug City. If you listen carefully during the scene where Al is in the elevator, the theme music of "A Bug's Life" can be heard. In the final scene of Jessie's return, the tree in the background is the tree from "A Bug's Life." Some "A Bug's Life" toys are visible in the background of Al's Toy Barn. Among the background objects in Hamm's Pizza Planet Truck is the Chinese takeout box used in the Gypsy and Manny magic show. Flik and Heimlich appeared in an "outtake" during the end title sequence, repaying the favor since Woody appeared in one of A Bug's Life's outtakes.
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The video game's opening scenes contain several references to the Star Wars films: the robot scanning device that bursts from the rock surface resembled the guard droid of Jabba the Hutt's palace in Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983); Buzz's passage through the tunnel in Zurg's fortress, with the spiked wall trap closing behind him as he enters a side passage, was taken from Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980); and Zurg's line "So, we meet again, Buzz Lightyear, for the last time!" is another version of what Darth Vader says to Obi-Wan Kenobi shortly before their duel in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977). This also occurs during the encounter with the Zurg toy in the elevator shaft of Al's apartment in the real world. The line also appears in Mel Brooks's Spaceballs, between Lord Dark Helmet and Lone Starr before their final battle.
- #215
As the credits roll at the end of the film, some of the included scenes are accompanied by 'outtakes.' The first of these, his trouble with the tape reel, is a reference to the famous scene in "The Money Pit" in which Tom Hanks's character gets stuck in the floor and breaks into uncontrollable laughter.
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The January 12, 1957 issue of Life magazine sets the date when Woody's television popularity peaked. Woody's Roundup is clearly based on Howdy Doody, which ran from 1947 to 1960 and peaked around 1955, roughly a year before Woody's Roundup peaks in its own universe. The magazine cover also features photographs of the first satellite, Sputnik. It appears to come from an alternate universe, because the Russians kept Sputnik a secret and did not announce it until they achieved a successful launch on October 4, 1957. In the Toy Story universe, the satellite was launched a year earlier than in the real universe. Life magazine's real Sputnik story was published on October 21, 1957.
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In one of the scenes during the credits, Stinky Pete flirtatiously tells two Barbies, "You know, I'm sure I could get you a part in Toy Story 3 (2010)," a reference to Hollywood's long history of the "casting couch." The scene was cut in 2019 following the emergence of the MeToo movement in 2017.
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In the scene where Buzz gives the other toys a motivational speech, the American flag and national anthem in the background disappear, and the scene then cuts to television showing the same image. However, this version of the shot was used only in the film's North American release. For the worldwide release, the American flag was replaced by a spinning globe and fireworks, and the music was replaced by an original score.
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Deeper Meaning (3)
- #234
Contains a major spoiler — show
The scene in which Woody, Buzz and Bullseye chase the luggage tractor to rescue Jessie resembles a typical Western film scene of the hero chasing a train on horseback. In fact, the first trailer behind the tractor is open-topped, giving it the appearance of a steam locomotive.
- #235
Stinky Pete actually ruined his own ambition of being exhibited in Japan. Desperate to stop Woody from leaving, he left his own box and screwed the bolts of the ventilation frame with his own pickaxe. It is implied that he left his box the night he turned the television back on to stop Woody. Because of his recklessness, he is therefore no longer a collectible, since every exhibit in the museum must be in absolutely 100% condition. Even the slightest opening of the container would cause the item to be considered worthless. And even if Al went to Tokyo with all his items, all the items would have to be inspected, and damage to or loss of even a single piece would mean the collection could not be accepted, which clearly explains why Al needed Woody's urgent repair in the first place. It could be argued that Pete was so determined to go to Japan that he abandoned his own box and did not realize he was ruining his own dream.
- #236
Woody's emotional breakdown scene nearly did not make the final cut. Pixar executives were reportedly worried that the raw intensity of the moment, in which Woody confronts the fact that he is a collectible and has potentially been forgotten by Andy, was "too real" for young viewers. The scene reflected deep existential fear, sadness and the weight of loss in a way unusual for animated films aimed at children. Despite the initial concerns, the filmmakers ultimately kept the sequence, trusting that children could handle emotional complexity when it was presented thoughtfully. The scene blends humor, poignancy and visual storytelling, allowing audiences to empathize with Woody's panic without being overwhelmed. The result was one of the most memorable and powerful moments in the series. Woody's vulnerability gives the character depth and relatability, teaching viewers about loss, identity and the fear of being left behind. By keeping the scene, Pixar showed that animated films can confront real emotions directly, a choice that continues to resonate with viewers of all ages.
Career & Awards (1)
Life & Family (1)
Related pages
- Ernest Scared Stupid — Toy Story 2 comes up in the facts on that page
- Abominable — Toy Story 2 comes up in the facts on that page
- The Green Mile — Toy Story 2 comes up in the facts on that page
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
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