Rotten Tomatoes' Best Toy Story Movie Selection Proves The Franchise Peaked 25 Years Ago

Summary Toy Story 2 is the highest-rated Toy Story film, according to Rotten Tomatoes.

The sequel is rich, complex, and sentimental, surpassing the original and later installments.

Disney and Pixar struggled to surpass Toy Story 2's quality, showing the franchise peaked 25 years ago.

The Toy Story movie series is undoubtedly Pixar's most successful franchise (grossing more than $3.3 billion at the box office), which is why the animation studio seemingly can't let go of it, despite it peaking over 20 years ago (based on Toy Story's best Rotten Tomatoes score). Toy Story, directed by John Lasseter, premiered in November 1995 as Pixar's first feature film and was a terrific way for the animation studio to make its debut. It ultimately earned around $394 million worldwide against a $30 million budget, and the 1995 movie's achievements spawned a billion-dollar franchise.

Toy Story 5 is scheduled to premiere in theaters on June 19, 2026.

Toy Story 2 followed four years after the first film, and then Pixar waited more than 10 years to release the third installment. Toy Story 3's ending led audiences to believe the franchise had come to a natural conclusion, given how the second sequel ended. However, Pixar wasn't done, and Toy Story 4 came nine years later (and a fifth movie is on the way). However, when one looks back at the franchise's Rotten Tomatoes scores, it's evident that the Toy Story film series is past its prime.

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Toy Story 2 Is The Best Movie In The Franchise According To Rotten Tomatoes

The Sequel Has A 100% Tomatometer Score

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The first two Toy Story movies have perfect Tomatometer scores on Rotten Tomatoes — Toy Story has a 100 percent score averaged from 96 reviews and Toy Story 2's 100 percent is from 171 reviews. However, Rotten Tomatoes also posted its "300 (Highest-Rated) Best Movies of All Time" list, which is "as reviewed and selected by Tomatometer-approved critics and Rotten Tomatoes users," and Toy Story 2 is ranked at eighth place, while the original film holds the twelfth place spot. So, for all intents and purposes, Rotten Tomatoes considers Toy Story 2 the best movie in the Pixar franchise.

Movie Release Date Tomatometer Audience Score Toy Story November 22, 1995 100% 92% Toy Story 2 November 24, 1999 100% 87% Toy Story 3 June 18, 2010 98% 90% Toy Story 4 June 21, 2019 97% 94%

Why Toy Story 2 Is The Best Toy Story Movie

The Second Film Is The Most Underrated Installment In The Toy Story Franchise

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Although some may be shocked to learn that Rotten Tomatoes would rank Toy Story 2 higher than Toy Story, its placement is more than justified. The 1999 animated adventure comedy film took what the original movie impressively created and raised the bar even higher for the Pixar franchise. Of course, Toy Story deserves its flowers for introducing the world to Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and the rest of Andy's toys. But the second film's story was far richer, complex, relatable, and sentimental (which is what the Toy Story movies are all about).

Toy Story 3 hit several emotional notes, but its pathos was a bit too exaggerated and forced, while Toy Story 4 struggled because the third movie had already seemingly wrapped up the franchise's story (making the need for it confusing).

Growing up and growing apart from those you love is one of the most human experiences, and the sequel beautifully translated it into the relationship between a kid and their toy. Jessie's heartbreaking story, underscored by Sarah McLachlan's song, "When She Loved Me," is one of the most memorable moments in the franchise, and it makes Woody first understand that nothing lasts forever. Throughout the movie, Woody is torn between running away from the inevitable hurt or making peace with this reality and enjoying the time he has left with Andy. By Toy Story 2's end, the answer is clear.

Sequels oftentimes feel like they are trying to recreate the original film's magic by copying and pasting its story. However, it always results in a significantly inferior sequel. Thankfully, John Lasseter avoided the sequel curse and created a film that could resonate with audiences more than Toy Story. Woody learning his origin story, meeting Jessie (one of Toy Story's best characters), and his choice to stay with Andy (despite his fear of his kid growing up and tossing Woody aside) are part of why Toy Story 2 is the best. Plus, it contains one of Toy Story's most memorable quotes:

"You're right, Prospector. I can't stop Andy from growing up, but I wouldn't miss it for the world."

Related Pixar Finally Has Its Toy Story Replacement Franchise After 13 Years Of Searching Toy Story is Pixar's greatest accomplishment, with four films and another on the way, but the studio has found a franchise that could replace it.

Toy Story 2 Being The Best Shows A Flaw In How Disney Has Handled The Franchise

The Following Sequels Couldn't Beat The First One

Pixar made two more Toy Story sequels following the 1999 release, and both have failed to exceed the first one's quality. Toy Story 3 hit several emotional notes, but its pathos was a bit too exaggerated and forced, while Toy Story 4 struggled because the third movie had already seemingly wrapped up the franchise's story (making the need for it confusing). It's evident that Disney and Pixar have mishandled the film series because they could never make a sequel better than Toy Story 2, proving that the franchise reached its peak 25 years ago and is past its prime.

Toy Story is the third-highest-grossing animated franchise, only trailing behind Despicable Me and Shrek.

Toy Story 2 Where to Watch *Availability in US stream

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buy Not available Not available Not available The sequel to Pixar's critically-acclaimed Toy Story, Toy Story 2 picks up the story of Woody (Tom Hanks) and Buzz (Tim Allen) when the cowboy doll is stolen by a toy collector. Learning that he's actually a rare collectible, Woody considers joining the collection along with cowgirl Jessie (Joan Cusack) and Stinky Pete the Prospector (Kelsey Grammer) until his friends mount a daring rescue mission. Director Lee Unkrich , Ash Brannon , John Lasseter Release Date November 24, 1999 Studio(s) Disney Writers Rita Hsiao , Andrew Stanton , Chris Webb , Doug Chamberlin Cast Tim Allen , Tom Hanks , Joan Cusack , Annie Potts , Kelsey Grammer Runtime 92 minutes Franchise(s) Toy Story Expand

Source: Rotten Tomatoes