Tim Allen has slammed the Toy Story spin-off film Lightyear after the conservative star was replaced voicing the character by Chris Evans.
The 69-year-old actor blasted the film – which recently flopped on opening weekend – during an interview with Extra on Wednesday.
Allen did not pull any punches discussing Lightyear as he said: ‘I’ve stayed out of this.
Not holding back: Tim Allen has slammed the Toy Story spin-off film Lightyear after the conservative star was replaced
Interesting: Chris Evans took over the role of Buzz Lightyear in the origin story prequel, as he is pictured with a statue of the character in London earlier this month
‘We talked about this many years ago…but the brass that did the first four movies is not this. It’s a whole new team that really had nothing to do with the first movies.’
He went on to say that he did not originally think the film would be animated like the previous Toy Story films and that it was actually live-action.
Allen continued: ‘There’s really no Toy Story Buzz without Woody. I’m not sure what the idea—I’m a plot guy. It would seem to be a big adventure story, and as I see, it’s not a big adventure story.
‘It’s a wonderful story, it just doesn’t seem to have any connection to the toy. It has no relationship to Buzz.’
Opening up: The 69-year-old actor blasted the film – which recently flopped on opening weekend – during an interview with Extra on Wednesday
Allen did not pull any punches discussing Lightyear as he said: ‘I’ve stayed out of this. We talked about this many years ago…but the brass that did the first four movies is not this. It’s a whole new team that really had nothing to do with the first movies’
Allen had previously voiced Buzz Lightyear in all four of the original Toy Story films from 1995 to 2019 alongside Tom Hanks who voiced cowboy Woody.
Last weekend Lightyear flopped in its first weekend in theaters, with the new Toy Story spin-off film earning $51.7 million in North America.
Not only did the movie open lower than expected, but it also failed to conquer Jurassic World: Dominion, which held on to the first-place spot with $58.7 million in its second weekend.
‘It’s a wonderful story, it just doesn’t seem to have any connection to the toy. It has no relationship to Buzz’: He went on to say that he did not originally think the film would be animated like the previous Toy Story films and that it was actually live-action
Many Toy Story fans had speculated previously whether Tim was replaced by Chris Evans in the prequel was a politically motivated decision, based on Allen’s support of the Republican party and conservative politics.
Allen has been quoted as saying he ‘liked that Donald Trump pissed people off’ and has previously referred to himself as ‘politically, kind of an anarchist’.
Allen’s disappearance had sparked criticism of Disney Pixar for what some believe was a shallow, politically-motivated silencing of an instantly recognizable voice.
Author Brigitte Gabriel tweeted: ‘Tim Allen is the only person capable of being Buzz Lightyear. Did Disney cancel him for being a Republican?’.
To infinity? Last weekend Lightyear flopped in its first weekend in theaters, with the new Toy Story spin-off film earning $51.7 million in North America
Taking a bite out of the competition: Not only did the movie open lower than expected, but it also failed to conquer Jurassic World: Dominion, which held on to the first-place spot with $58.7 million in its second weekend
Other users said it was ‘sad’ that Allen had been ‘canceled for wrong-think and hit out at Disney’s ‘woke’ agenda.
It comes after comedian Allen had his sitcom Last Man Standing canceled by network ABC in 2017 despite it being one of the most popular shows at the time.
Many speculated was down to Allen having simply refused to shy away from voicing his political stance.
Allen voiced Buzz Lightyear in the 1995 Pixar film Toy Story, which scooped $373 million at the box office and has since become of the most well-loved animated films of all time.
He then reprised the role in several sequel films and animated shorts, and voiced the animated astro-toy as recently as 2019 in Toy Story 4.
Many Toy Story fans had speculated previously whether Tim was replaced by Chris Evans in the prequel was a politically motivated decision, based on Allen’s support of the Republican party and conservative politics as author Brigitte Gabriel tweeted: ‘Tim Allen is the only person capable of being Buzz Lightyear. Did Disney cancel him for being a Republican?’
Other users said hit out at Disney’s ‘woke’ agenda and referred to Allen’s sitcom, Last Man Standing, which was canceled by network ABC in 2017 despite being one of the year’s most popular shows
Another user tweeted it was ‘sad’ that Allen was ‘canceled for wrong-think’, as many fans have criticized his removal from the role of Buzz Lightyear
Then earlier this month, Patricia Heaton blasted ‘stupid’ Disney bosses for replacing Tim with Chris.
Taking to Twitter on June 14, the actress, 64, defended her friend, 69, who voiced Buzz in the Pixar franchise’s four original movies between between 1995 and 2019.
She claimed they made a ‘huge mistake’ for re-casting her pal, going so far as to say they ‘completely castrated this iconic, beloved character’.
Over two tweets, the Everybody Loves Raymond star began: ‘Saw the trailer for Buzz Lightyear and all I can say is Disney/Pixar made a HUGE mistake in not casting my pal Tim Allen in the role that he originated, the role that he owns.
Fuming: Then earlier this month, Patricia Heaton blasted ‘stupid’ Disney bosses for replacing Tim with Chris as she wrote: ‘Saw the trailer for Buzz Lightyear and all I can say is Disney/Pixar made a HUGE mistake in not casting my pal Tim Allen in the role that he originated, the role that he owns’
‘Why castrate the character?!’ Patricia Heaton has blasted ‘stupid’ Disney bosses for replacing Tim Allen with Chris Evans in the new Toy Story spin-off film Lightyear
Iconic: Taking to Twitter on Tuesday, the actress, 64, defended her friend, 69, (pictured in 2019) who voiced Buzz in the franchise’s four original movies between between 1995 and 2019
‘Tim IS Buzz! Why would they completely castrate this iconic, beloved character?’
She followed up with: ‘Ok so the current Buzz Lightyear movie is an origin story – but the reason the character became so beloved is because of what @ofctimallen created.
‘Why remove the one element that makes us want to see it #stupidHollywooddecisions.’
For millions of movie fans, Tim will always be linked to Buzz Lightyear, the none-too-bright would-be astronaut that he voiced in 1995’s animated Pixar blockbuster.
But Captain America star Chris admitted he was a little intimidated as he took on the role of voicing Buzz for Lightyear.
When it came to delivering Buzz’s famous catchphrase, ‘To infinity and beyond,’ the Hollywood star said he simply copied Tim’s version.
Wow! When it came to delivering Buzz’s famous catchphrase, ‘to infinity and beyond,’ the Hollywood star said he simply copied Tim’s version (left, Toy Story, right, Lightyear)
According to The Daily Telegraph, he said: ‘I’m doing Tim and I don’t care.
‘It makes you feel so nervous to hear yourself out loud – it almost feels wrong. It’s like trying to say, “Bond, James Bond,” and you’re like, “Nope, nope, nope – that’s for someone else.”‘
Chris’ character in the origins picture is not quite the character that Tim Allen played.
In Toy Story, Buzz was merely a toy who thought he was an astronaut.
Lightyear, explained Chris, is supposed to be the movie the toy is based on.
In the plot of the new film, Buzz is a Space Ranger, marooned on a hostile planet, who tries to find his way home. The character is a bit smarter that the toy Buzz.
‘[Tim Allen] is Buzz Lightyear to me too – I grew up on these movies,’ he said.
‘So, you certainly want to use it as a template…And he did such a good job, I would be a fool to not absorb some of the choices. But at the same time you have to kind of make some kind of fresh track in the snow.’
Evans also recently reexplained the plot of the film almost two years after a tweet he initially put out was ridiculed by fans.
At the time he wrote, ‘And just to be clear, this isn’t Buzz Lightyear the toy. This is the origin story of the human Buzz Lightyear that the toy is based on.’
Originally posted 2022-06-30 16:59:43.