Here's how 'Toy Story 4' will honor the late Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head (2024)

For a character whose reputation is built on replaceable parts, there's nothing replaceable about the voice of Toy Story's Mr. Potato Head, the late comedian Don Rickles.

Fans had been curious to know whether Rickles, who died in April 2017 at the age of 90, would appear in the upcoming fourth film in the franchise, in which he's voiced surly spud Mr. Potato Head since the series' 1995 inception. Toy Story 4 was formally announced in November 2014; Rickles had signed on to the film, but when he died two-and-a-half years later, the legendary comic had not recorded dialogue yet while the script was still being written.

In a recent interview with EW, Toy Story 4 director Josh Cooley confirmed that Rickles' voice would in fact be featured in the film, evidently by both permission and request of his family. Cooley also tweeted the news on Thursday.

"Of course we loved Don obviously, and after he passed, his family contacted us and asked if there was any way that we could create a performance using the recordings that we had," Cooley tells EW. "Now, he signed to be in Toy Story 4. Unfortunately we did not get a chance to record him for the film. But we went through, jeez, 25 years of everything we didn't use for Toy Story 1, 2, 3, the theme parks, the ice capades, the video games—everything that he's recorded for Mr. Potato Head. And we were able to do that. And so I'm very honored that they asked us to do that, and I'm very honored that he's in the film. Nobody can replace him."

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Here's how 'Toy Story 4' will honor the late Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head (2024)

FAQs

Here's how 'Toy Story 4' will honor the late Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head? ›

In “Toy Story 4,” Mr Potato Head is voiced posthumously by Don Rickles (who passed away in 2017). The Pixar team mined through more than two decades of Rickles' voice sessions, outtakes for other films, theme parks, toys,...etc. to piece together the performance.

Did Don Rickles voice Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story 4? ›

Don Rickles had in fact signed up to return as Mr Potato Head for Toy Story 4 while the movie was still in production but he died before he could record any new dialogue for the movie, so at the request of his family members, Pixar just used the old recordings of his voice that they already had from the previous Toy ...

Why wasn't Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story 4? ›

Legendary comedian Don Rickles voiced Mr. Potato Head since the first Toy Story movie, and he was slated to reprise his role in Toy Story 4. Sadly, Rickles passed away in April 2017, before he could record any lines for the movie, but the team behind Toy Story 4 found a way to make him a part of the movie.

Will Mr. Potato Head be in Toy Story 5? ›

Mindy Rickles, 57, opened up to TMZ about Disney Pixar continuing to use her father's voice as Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story 5. She hopes that the animation studio would continue using her father's voice, though she hopes that no A.I. is used in the process.

Is Toy Story 5 in the making? ›

Disney will release Pixar's Toy Story 5 on June 19, 2026, the studio announced Friday. Disney CEO Bob Iger first announced Toy Story 5 in February 2023, with the sequel an attempt to return to form for the franchise after the disappointing performance of the 2022 spinoff, Lightyear, which voice starred Chris Evans.

Who replaced Don Rickles in Toy Story 4? ›

Late Don Rickles Will Still Appear in 'Toy Story 4' as Mr. Potato Head: 'Nobody Can Replace Him'

Why does Bo look different in Toy Story 4? ›

If they left her looking similar to Toy Story 1 & 2 (which could have been possible) it would be awesome as we get the original looking Bo Peep with the badass personality she has. But because TS1 and TS2 are so old, Bo Peep's appearance needed to match the updated animation and technology Pixar has today.

Why does Andy look different in Toy Story 4? ›

Not only have the animators taken advantage of the ostensible improvements in digital animation since 2010, but it appears the animators have used the Toy Story 3 version of Andy as the template from which to de-age him back down to a young boy.

What happened to Bo in Toy Story 4? ›

The film's opening sequence reveals how Bo is separated from Woody: three years following the events of Toy Story 2 after coordinating the rescue of RC, Bo and her sheep are given away by Andy's mother, and although Woody tries to convince Bo to stay, she states that she understands that part of the cycle of a toy is ...

Is Toy Story 5 coming out in 2024? ›

Just last summer, it was confirmed by Pixar's creative chief officer that Woody and Buzz Lightyear will be returning for the fifth Toy Story sequel. The fifth installment is set to arrive in 2026, almost seven years after the most recent one, 2019's Toy Story 4.

Will Toy Story 5 have Woody? ›

Not much has been confirmed when it comes to the Toy Story 5 cast, though Pete Docter has confirmed Buzz and Woody's return. That announcement isn't particularly surprising, since Buzz and Woody have always been the heart and soul of the franchise since the first installment.

What will Toy Story 5 be about? ›

In June 2023, Pixar boss Pete Docter confirmed that Toy Story 5 would again focus on the story of Woody and Buzz. There wouldn't be Toy Story without the powerhouse voice performances of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen as Woody and Buzz Lightyear — so will they return for Toy Story 5?

Will there be Toy Story 7? ›

Toy Story 7 has been rumored, but not confirmed. Pixar is hoping to convince Stanton to return after the 6th installment, which he has stated, "will be the final installment". Pixar plans on releasing a 7th installment with or without Stanton in 2035, but currently no other director is lined up.

Will Toy Story 5 have Tom Hanks? ›

21, 2023, that the head of Disney reached out to co-star Tom Hanks and him to reprise their roles. Tim Allen all but confirmed a reunion between Woody and Buzz in another installment of the Pixar film franchise “Toy Story.” Disney CEO Bob Iger said “Toy Story 5 was on” Tim Allen revealed Tuesday.

What will Toy Story 6 be about? ›

Premise. Director Andrew Stanton revealed that this would be the last Toy story as Woody will end up in a junkyard after being left at the playground of Bonnie's Middle School. The full events have not been concluded, but Stanton did confirm that Woody would be working with other scrapped toys and new friends to escape ...

Who voiced potato head in Toy Story 4? ›

In 1995, Mr. Potato Head was featured in a leading role in the Disney/Pixar animated feature Toy Story, with the voice provided by comedian Don Rickles. Potato Head returned in Toy Story's three sequels - Toy Story 2 (1999), Toy Story 3 (2010) and Toy Story 4 (2019) - with Rickles reprising the role. In 1995, Mr.

Who did Mr Potato head in Toy Story 4? ›

Toy Story 4 (2019) - Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head - IMDb.

Who provided the voice of Mr Potato Head in Toy Story? ›

Toy Story (1995) - Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head - IMDb.

Who does Mrs. Potato Head voice in Toy Story? ›

Estelle Nussbaum Harris was an American actress, voice actress, and comedian, who was best known for Disney as the voice of Mrs. Potato Head in the Disney/Pixar Toy Story franchise, with Toy Story 4 being her last film before her death.

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