Tom Hanks questions Chris Evans replacing Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear
Tom Hanks does not understand why Disney opted to replace “Toy Story” voice actor Tim Allen with Chris Evans in “Lightyear.”
The new Pixar spinoff does not feature Hanks or Allen, who voiced Woody and Buzz Lightyear, respectively, in the franchise’s four films from 1995 to 2019.
Hanks — whose latest flick “Elvis” is also in cinemas now — was asked in a recent interview whether it was “strange to be in theaters opposite a Buzz Lightyear film.”
“How ’bout that? I actually wanted to go head-to-head with Tim Allen, and then they didn’t let Tim Allen do it. I don’t understand that,” the “Forrest Gump” star, 65, told CinemaBlend.
When the interviewer mentioned the studio replacing Allen, 69, with Evans, 41, Hanks added, “Yeah, yeah, I know” but then seemed to soften his stance.
“Here’s the thing: I want to go back in the theater with a bunch of strangers and leave with something in common,” he said.
“That’s what I want to do. And going to see a movie with him, I’m looking forward to that.”
The “Home Improvement” alum also has not been shy about criticizing the movie, which follows Buzz’s origin story, telling “Extra” he was disappointed it did not have a closer resemblance to the character he originated.
“This is a whole new team that really had nothing to do with the first movies,” Allen said.
“The short answer is I’ve stayed out of this. … I thought it was a live-action. When they said they were doing it live-action, that’s what I thought to mean real humans and not an animated thing.”
Allen also noted there was “no Buzz without [Hanks’] Woody.”
“So I’m not sure what the idea [is] … I’m a plot guy,” he explained. “If this was done in 1997, 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.”
Despite the criticism, Evans recently gushed over Allen’s past portrayal of Buzz.
“My younger version would have just been pinching himself,” the “Captain America” star said during a chat with “Good Morning America” on June 17.
Evans then acknowledged, “Look, Tim Allen is Buzz Lightyear. What he did in those movies is so iconic and so loved, and I’d be a fool not to incorporate some of his choices into this role.
“The character in this movie is the human version that the toy is based off of, so it makes sense to have a little bit of overlap, luckily for me,” the “Avengers” star continued. “What Tim Allen did was pretty untouchable.”
