Toy Story is back on the big screen with the release of spin-off movie Lightyear which sees Chris Evans take over from Tim Allen as the titular space ranger.
We wouldn't blame you if you were a bit confused about how it all connects to the wider universe. Lightyear has been described as the "definitive origin story" for Buzz Lightyear, but how can that be when he's seen as a proper space ranger and not a toy?
Luckily, the opening credits of Lightyear clear up any confusion you may have had, better than even the marketing campaign has. "In 1995, a boy named Andy got a Buzz Lightyear toy for his birthday. It was from his favourite movie. This is that movie," it reads.
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1995 was, of course, the release of Toy Story so the idea of Lightyear is that it's a fictional movie within the Toy Story universe that Andy saw as a child before we met him in the first movie.
It means that while Lightyear certainly has nods to the Toy Story universe, such as Zurg being the villain, there aren't any other connections to the events of those movies. This is a Buzz separate to the one we know and love from the Toy Story movies.
For instance, don't expect to find an answer here to why Buzz goes rigid around human, even though he doesn't know he's a toy or any other lingering Toy Story mysteries, unlike other spin-offs in major series.
Even with this knowledge, it might be a bit confusing why the Buzz of Lightyear shares a lot of the same characteristics as the Buzz of Toy Story, even though they're not the same person.
Luckily, director and co-writer Angus MacLane has an answer: "It's in the DNA of the toy because the toy is based on it."
And if you're wondering whether Lightyear is a live-action or animated movie within the Toy Story universe, MacLane confirmed at a recent press conference that it was a live-action movie that Andy saw before going even meta (via Gizmodo).
"We got asked who were the filmmakers who made the film. And then we realised we are the filmmakers because the credits have our names on it. [So] I think there's an in-universe version of each of us [and] that we are now Disney characters."
Lightyear is released in cinemas on June 17.
![Lightyear [DVD]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1659454040-51fkFy9on0L._SL500_.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "Lightyear [DVD]")
![The Complete Toy Story Collection: Toy Story / Toy Story 2 / Toy Story 3 [Blu-ray]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1556619274-1542275770-toy-story-4.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "The Complete Toy Story Collection: Toy Story / Toy Story 2 / Toy Story 3 [Blu-ray]")
Disney The Complete Toy Story Collection: Toy Story / Toy Story 2 / Toy Story 3 [Blu-ray]
Couture Kingdom x Toy Story white gold-plated Woody boot necklace
Movies Editor, Digital Spy Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor. Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies, attending genre festivals around the world. After moving to Digital Spy, initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.
