Pixar’s Hoppers Raises Red Flags for Toy Story 5
Pixar’s Hoppers leaps with charm and invention under We Bare Bears creator Daniel Chong, led by Piper Curda with Bobby Moynihan among the ensemble—but the very swing that makes it soar is why fans may be bracing for Toy Story 5.
Pixar just dropped a winner with Hoppers, and that success has me oddly more on edge about Toy Story 5 than before. Let me explain.
So what is Hoppers?
Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Pictures team up on an original from director Daniel Chong (yep, the creator of We Bare Bears). The film follows Mabel Tanaka, an animal-obsessed teen who uses a cutting-edge device to shift her consciousness into a hyper-realistic robotic beaver so she can literally talk to animals. That wild premise opens the door to secrets in the animal world and forces Mabel to rally every creature she can find when a major human-made threat closes in.
The cast
- Piper Curda as Mabel Tanaka
- Bobby Moynihan as King George
- Jon Hamm as Jerry Generazzo
- Kathy Najimy as Dr. Samantha 'Sam' Fairfax
- Dave Franco as Titus
- Eduardo Franco as Loaf
- Meryl Streep as Insect Queen
Critical heat and early box office buzz
Critics are into it. Hoppers is sitting at 96% on the Tomatometer as of now, which is elite territory. Early tracking suggests it could deliver Pixar’s biggest opening weekend since Coco. That would be a genuine comeback signal for the studio’s original storytelling.
Why this makes me eye Toy Story 5
Hoppers plays like classic Pixar: inventive hook, real heart, jokes that actually land. After a stretch where projects underwhelmed or sparked debate — Elio, Lightyear, and Onward took their lumps, while Elemental, Turning Red, Luca, and Soul depend on who you ask — this feels like the spark reigniting.
And yet, right around the corner sits Toy Story 5. For the first time, Pixar is taking a franchise to a fifth entry. The original Toy Story trilogy is sacred text, and Toy Story 4 exists in that tricky zone of 'great filmmaking, do we need it?' Stepping into a fifth chapter leans harder into the business case than the creative dare. Can it still be great? Absolutely. But when Pixar proves it can crush an original like Hoppers, jumping immediately back to a legacy sequel feels like whiplash.
What’s next after Hoppers
The next original on the calendar is Gatto, arriving next March. Marketing hasn’t kicked in yet, but the goodwill from Hoppers should prime the pump for that one. As for Toy Story 5, expectations just went up. If Pixar is back in a big way, the new sequel has to clear a higher bar than ever.
Bottom line
Hoppers is the confident, funny, creatively weird Pixar movie fans have been missing. It also raises the stakes for Toy Story 5 in a big way. Momentum is back; now the next move matters.
Hoppers is now playing in U.S. theaters.