Hanks, who has voiced the cowboy doll Woody<\/a> since the original Toy Story<\/a> was released in 1995, said that the story reflected a wider generational relationship with technology. \u201cOne generation has this thing that defines them technologically in society, and they pour everything into it,\u201d he told the BBC.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a moment in the movie where we look out on the cityscape and we see that blue glow of a phone in bedrooms<\/a> and whatnot, and it does strike terror into the heart,\u201d Hanks added.<\/p>\n In the latest instalment of Pixar’s long-running franchise<\/a>, Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Jessie find themselves competing with a new kind of rival: a frog-shaped tablet called Lilypad, voiced by Greta Lee. The film follows the toys as they struggle to remain relevant after Bonnie becomes captivated by the device, with Pixar describing the story as \u201cToy meets Tech\u201d. <\/p>\n Alongside Hanks as Woody, Tim Allen<\/a> returns as the space ranger Buzz Lightyear, while Joan Cusack reprises her role as the yodelling cowgirl Jessie.<\/a><\/p>\n Allen said he had recently clashed with his teenage daughter during a cinema trip after she quickly lost patience because children are now \u201cso used to seven-second movies on Instagram\u201d.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cShe actually looked at a motion picture and went, \u2018I get it! He\u2019s going to be the villain and they\u2019re going to do this,\u2019\u201d Allen told the BBC. \u201cWe had a little argument. I said, \u2018from now on, if we go to movie theatres, we watch the movie, and you can [complain] about it afterwards\u2019. But she wasn\u2019t wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n Allen said younger audiences were now \u201cso used to a beginning, middle and end arc in seven seconds\u201d because of social media that many struggled to stay engaged with longer films \u201cother than Avatar\u201d, which he described as \u201can experience\u201d.<\/p>\n Cusack said the film\u2019s themes would \u201cresonate\u201d with parents trying to limit screen time<\/a>, but Allen acknowledged that fears around new technology were not new. \u201cAs soon as I said \u2018put that phone down\u2019, I remember my parents going \u2018turn the music off\u2019,\u201d Allen said.<\/p>\n Lee said last month that Lilypad was not \u201cquite a villain\u201d<\/a> and \u201coften has really good intentions\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe issue is complicated because tech isn\u2019t going anywhere, and it is beneficial in a myriad of ways, but there is a real concern about the cost of all of this screen time that we get to see in the movie,\u201d she told PA. <\/p>\n Governments around the world are increasingly seeking to curb <\/a>children\u2019s use of smartphones and social media. Last year, Australia became the first country to introduce a nationwide minimum age of 16<\/a> for social media accounts, while Norway<\/a>, France<\/a>, Spain<\/a>, and Denmark are pursuing similar measures to restrict children\u2019s access to online platforms. <\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/GettyImages-2278647720.jpeg\")
The cast of Toy Story 5 have said the film explores children\u2019s growing dependence on screens (Getty)<\/p>\n![\"Allen](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/01KSQW7R15B8D9BRFRF6AMWXGR.jpg\")
Allen said his teenage daughter had trouble focusing on a film because children are now \u2018so used to seven-second movies on Instagram\u2019 (PA)<\/p>\n