The Buzz Lightyear story in Toy Story 5 creates a hilarious opportunity for Chris Evans to return. The Toy Story 5 cast will feature Tim Allen voicing Buzz Lightyear. Allen first voiced the beloved character in the original Toy Story movie released in 1995 and continued to voice him in Toy Story 2, Toy Story 3, Toy Story 4, and in the television movies Toy Story of Terror and Toy Story That Time Forgot. However, Allen did not voice Buzz in Pixar’s 2022 movie Lightyear, which saw Chris Evans voicing the character instead.

While Lightyear received some positive reviews, the Toy Story spinoff did not perform well at the box office, and received its fair share of criticism, including from Allen. Instead of another spinoff, the franchise is now returning with a sequel that has Allen reprising the role of Buzz and Tom Hanks reprising the role of Woody. Even though Allen is the one voicing Buzz again, one story detail that has been teased means that there is a way for Evans to return as well.

Toy Story 5 Will Have Multiple Buzz Lightyears Thanks To Another Buzz Lightyear Villain Story

Part of Toy Story 5‘s plot is an army of 50 Buzz Lightyears stuck in toy mode. This means that these 50 Buzz Lightyears will not realize that they are toys and will believe they are space rangers responsible for protecting the galaxy and fighting the Evil Emperor Zurg, which is what Buzz believed in the original Toy Story before his eyes were opened to the truth. It is also reminiscent of Toy Story 2, where numerous Buzz Lightyears, still in their boxes, are shown at Al’s Toy Barn.

Toy Story 5 concept art shows that at least some of these Buzz Lightyears will escape their toy boxes and are seen outside an empty shipping container as they look toward the horizon. While the sequel is poised to largely revolve around the conflict between toys and technology, an escaped army of Buzz Lightyears stuck in toy mode will also be an important part of the plot and will be antagonists.

Chris Evans Should Be The Voice Of Toy Story 5’s Evil Buzz Lightyears Instead Of Tim Allen

It Would Be A Practical & Fun Choice

Allen is expected to voice all the Buzz Lightyears in Toy Story 5, but the evil ones could be voiced by Evans instead. All the versions of the characters may look the same, but having Evans voice the antagonistic Buzz Lightyears could be an effective way to distinguish them from Allen’s version of the character. This can be especially helpful in scenes where Allen’s Buzz is surrounded by the army stuck in toy mode, which creates a practical reason to bring Evans into the sequel.

Bringing Evans back in this way would also be a fun connection to Lightyear. While the 2022 movie was not a box office hit and generated some controversy, it has already been established to be the movie that inspired the Buzz Lightyear toy in the Toy Story universe, along with being Andy’s favorite movie. Having Evans in Toy Story 5 is a way for Pixar to build on that foundation and to make the spinoff feel more connected to the rest of the franchise.

Chris Evans Voicing The Buzz Lightyear Villains Would Be Hilariously Meta

The Multiple Voices Of Buzz Can Interact With Each Other

Along with helping to distinguish the various Buzz Lightyears and being a fun connection, Evans’ return can be genuinely funny in a meta way. Pixar’s decision to recast Evans as the voice of Buzz was a controversial choice, and this would make it amusing for him to now be voicing the “bad” version of the character in Toy Story 5. It will feel incredibly meta to see Allen’s Buzz interacting with Evans’ Buzz and to see their two worlds colliding.

Having Evans in Toy Story 5 also presents a unique opportunity to become more accepted by the audience. Those who struggled with Lightyear may enjoy Evans’ version of the character more when he is part of the main Toy Story movies and in a story revolving around Allen’s Buzz, Woody, and the franchise’s other classic characters. If audiences enjoy Evans’ portrayal in Toy Story 5, it could even lead to Lightyear being given more of a second chance and seen through a new lens.