Paulina Chats With Tony Hale About Toy Story 5

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Tony, How are you good?

Speaker 2 (00:01):
How are you? Nice? To see you?

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Nice to see you. Thank you for joining me today.
So it's so funny because I was actually gonna gorow
and grab my four ky doll. It's not my doll
or the toy, but it's my daughters big fans around here.
So thank you for joining me.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Oh my gosh, how old is your daughter? She's two? Oh?

Speaker 1 (00:17):
Yes, Oh, I know. It's It's the best. It's the
best thing in the world. And this is why I'm
excited to talk to you specifically because toy story is
such a part of my life. Right, I'm thirty thirty
four years old. Just for in thirty four, it's crazy.
But now that I'm a mom, and I'm sure you're
hearing this a lot too from other parents and like
the millennials, like, it's just also full circle. So I
think it's so cool that you know, toy story five,

(00:38):
we're doing it. It's happening.

Speaker 3 (00:40):
Yeah, And I mean, you really are an example of
toy story has been every part of your life, you know,
because it was because I guess you were born nineteen
early nineties ninety two. Yeah, and so like this came
around nineteen ninety five.

Speaker 2 (00:54):
So this is man. Toy Story has been around your whole.

Speaker 1 (00:56):
Life, literally, and I watched all the movies, but I'm
gonna be honest with you though, too, Like I saw
three and four because of my daughter, So chum, it's
like it's a connecting kind of thing, you know, for
us to be able to connect, and like I grew up,
you know with the first two and then she came along.
So it's just really exciting and I love it. So
you know, we're talking about nostalgia, of course, and in

(01:17):
a way it's a very very comforting, right. So Toy
Story often shows kind of the painful side of it
too though, and that's kind of what I wanted to
ask as well. So unfortunately, you know, being left behind,
growing up, letting go, these have been the common themes,
right when it comes to previous movies. Right, So, do
you think nostalgia kind of helps us move forward or
do you think it keeps us kind of looking back?

Speaker 2 (01:36):
Oh that's a good question. I consider myself super nostalgic.
Super nostalgic.

Speaker 3 (01:42):
I'm always the one in my friends that's like, let's
get together, let's tell old stories, because I don't remember
stuff and so let's get together and talk about it.

Speaker 2 (01:50):
And it does.

Speaker 3 (01:51):
But it's a mix because anytime I go back to
my hometown, it's that little pain associated with the joy
because it's that twinge of like, oh my gosh, you
remember how things were and how long ago it was,
and at the same time, it's just so great to
see each other.

Speaker 2 (02:05):
So I think it's a real mix of.

Speaker 1 (02:06):
The two hundred percent. And yeah, I'm putting nostalgic myself,
so I completely get what you're saying. So toy Story
three and four, like I mentioned, I watched with my daughter.
Right the three felt like a goodbye. Four was like
a new beginning in my In my opinion, what kind
of emotional space does toy Story five occupy?

Speaker 3 (02:25):
Man To me, it's so relevant because it's the thing is,
they're not coming from a place of bashing technology. They're
just coming from a place that nothing's going to replace
real human connection. You know, well, we'll never as much
as maybe technology sometimes wants to, it's not going to.
And so as long as we keep that balance, that

(02:45):
the power of connection with the incredible technology out there,
that's good, just sometimes it can go awry and we
have to.

Speaker 2 (02:52):
Always watch that.

Speaker 1 (02:54):
I completely agree. So kind of speaking of that, I
feel like it would be impossible to ignore that. It's
not even maybe just I'm gonna say a kid problem
right with tablets or just technology. And like I'm a
new mom, so I'm new.

Speaker 2 (03:08):
To all this.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
However, like I see it, you know, but I think
it'd be almost impossible to say that adults or parents
also might have that problem.

Speaker 2 (03:17):
You know what I mean.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
Yeah, my phone's in my hand all the time, Tony.

Speaker 2 (03:21):
It's ridiculous, I know.

Speaker 3 (03:22):
And it's really you're right, because it's something that they
watch us, honestly, and it's I have a twenty year
old daughter and she has seen me trying to navigate
that because it's very easy for your phone to become
your center, you know, like even when I don't have it,
you get kind of phantom phone kind of.

Speaker 2 (03:38):
Feelings, and it's like, you know, she's seeing that.

Speaker 3 (03:41):
So it's something that we as parents really have to
I mean, I'm constantly on her about being present, you know,
put it down, but it's like here am I picking
it up?

Speaker 2 (03:49):
You know, I gotta watch that.

Speaker 1 (03:52):
So do you think that Toy story five? As much
as speaking to the kids. It's also maybe speaking to
the adults in the audience.

Speaker 3 (03:58):
Totally, just like I mean, like any Pixar movie, for me,
I'm the one that's crying, you know, because it's just
they have this beautiful magic about them where it's like
everybody can relate to it. I mean I when I
saw Inside Out for the first time, I was like,
how did they possibly orchestrate the emotional life and made
it this creative?

Speaker 2 (04:17):
And yet they did?

Speaker 1 (04:18):
You know, Yeah, no, absolutely, I couldn't agree more. And
I know that Toy Story has always kind of explored
let's say, like identity, right like maybe out when we're
loved and we're forgotten and kind of like even when
we're lost, to be honest. So I'm curious how Forky
your character kind of fits into this conversation and Toy
Story five specifically.

Speaker 3 (04:38):
Yeah, I mean Fourky is what I love about four
Ky is so open, he's so curious, tons of questions,
So he's just kind of he's to me, he's an
example of somebody who I'm sure even though he does
have any identity issues or he's.

Speaker 2 (04:56):
Figuring out who he is, he's not afraid to talk
about it. He's not afraid to like ask like what
does this mean? And where are we? What do you do?

Speaker 3 (05:02):
And not put labels on anybody, But he's curious to
ask the question, you know. I remember in Toy Story
four there was that, you know, evil Doll, Gabby Gabby
and everybody was like, ooh, evil Doll, and Forky was like,
I think she's got pretty hair. I just want to
brush her hair. And so he's he's just comes from
a place of curiosity, which is amazing.

Speaker 1 (05:22):
It kind of reminds us of our kids a little bit. Yeah,
really do lean into curiosity.

Speaker 3 (05:26):
I'm learning that with a two year old, I know,
And that's that's a lesson we need to pick up
more of.

Speaker 1 (05:31):
I what one hundred percent agree absolutely? What was the
conversation inside Pixar about whether there was even a story
worth telling?

Speaker 2 (05:39):
Right?

Speaker 1 (05:39):
So, I work on a morning show in Chicago. I'm
the only one with a kid on the show, okay,
And everybody's like, what could they possibly do? And I'm like, listen,
I'm like, they could do another thirty years if they
wanted to, you know, our stories to tell.

Speaker 3 (05:51):
Yeah, And that's the I'm glad you said that, because
that's the beautiful thing about Pixtar.

Speaker 2 (05:54):
They're not going to tell another story if they don't
have a story to tell.

Speaker 3 (05:58):
And so they obviously looked at the culture and it's like,
there is something that a lot of people are afraid
to talk about, how to navigate it with technology and stuff,
and let's let's just try to embrace this, and they
obviously beautifully have.

Speaker 1 (06:13):
Yeah, I'm so excited to see it. It'll actually be
my daughter's and my first movie together.

Speaker 3 (06:18):
Oh.

Speaker 2 (06:19):
What's your daughter's.

Speaker 1 (06:20):
Name, Gabriella? We call her Gigi.

Speaker 2 (06:24):
Oh do you have voice memos on your phone? I
do it. I'll do a little voice memo for her.

Speaker 1 (06:30):
Okay, we're good.

Speaker 2 (06:31):
Hey Gigi, this is four key from Toy Story. How's
it going.

Speaker 3 (06:35):
I've heard you're the coolest kid, and I just wanted
to say hello.

Speaker 2 (06:38):
All right, Gigi, have a great day. Bye bye.

Speaker 1 (06:41):
He's gonna love it. This cronis isn't a how lucky
she She's a little lucky little girl. Oh my god,
Tony Hale, thank you so much. June nineteenth, Toy Story five.
We are so excited and we appreciate you being here.

Speaker 2 (06:52):
Thank you, thank you, thank you.