Toy Story

Don Rickles can't record new lines for "Toy Story 5" -- but his daughter's hoping Disney has more archived audio to use, 'cause she wants her dad in the flick ... TMZ has learned.

ICYMI ... the fifth installment of the beloved animated franchise got a 2026 release date, announced Wednesday. We don't have cast details yet, but Rickles -- who played Mr. Potato Head in the first four installments of the franchise -- passed away in 2017.

We spoke to Mindy Rickles -- the daughter of the late great actor and comedian -- and she tells us ... Disney or Pixar has not yet reached out about a plan to use Don's voice, which is interesting considering Potato Head is a huge character in the franchise.

In fact -- MR was so in the dark, she says, that she didn't even know "Toy Story 5" was announced ... and doesn't have a clue if they plan on using his voice, or recasting MPH.

With that said ... Mindy tells us she's giving the franchise two thumbs up to use her dad's vocals via footage they might have left over and stashed away in the vault over the years -- but it's gotta really be him ... because she says AI's a no-go for her.

This isn't a new concept ... "Toy Story 4" came out in 2019 -- about two years after Don passed away and he hadn't recorded a single line of dialogue for the movie at the time.

The 'TS4' team got creative and cherry-picked unused lines he recorded for the first three movies, theme parks, associated video games, and even the 'Disney On Ice: Toy Story' show to piece together his part. That's exactly what Mindy tells us she wants to happen now.

It's unclear exactly how much more dialogue Disney might have from Don ... but with Mrs. Potato Head actress Estelle Harris' death in 2022, the creatives behind 'Toy Story' might just say the couple's moved on to another family -- like Wheezy the singing penguin and Bo Peep between the second and third movies. Of course, they could just get new voice actors too.

Galyn Susman -- the longtime Disney producer who's credited with saving "Toy Story 2" -- just got the boot alongside several other Pixar employees ... and fans are pissed.

The news came down Saturday from Reuters, which reported Susman was one of 75 Pixar workers who recently gotten the axe in mass layoffs. She was one of 3 key Pixar people to be let go ... the others included Michael Agulnek -- Pixar's VP of worldwide publicity -- and 'Lightyear' director Angus MacLane, who was involved in other Pixar flicks too.

The firings are reportedly tied to the bomb that was last year's 'Lightyear' ... a movie based on the "real" Buzz Lightyear, voiced by Chris Evans. It had a budget of about $200 mil, and only made $226 mil at the worldwide box office ... not to mention middling reviews.

While the film didn't do well, many are saying that scapegoating -- and ultimately canning -- the execs/producers tied to its development is cold-blooded ... especially as it pertains to Galyn, who played a very important in preserving what was left of 'TS2' at the time.

It's the stuff of legends -- and this story's been repeated several times by Disney execs over the years. There was some kind of glitch in Disney's computers that literally deleted upwards of 90% of the movie back then as it was about a year out from its imminent release date.

The studio was scrambling to preserve whatever was left, but from the looks of it ... they were going to have to start from scratch -- that is, until Galyn came to the rescue with a backup copy ... which she fortunately had in her possession due to her WFH/maternity leave.

In the end, Disney remade the movie anyway -- creating a different version from what Galyn had saved -- but her extra files undoubtedly saved them a lot of time/work/money.

"Toy Story" could be getting a new sequel ... because of a mysterious breakfast date.

Check out these pics of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen chowing down low-key and somewhat undercover at a somewhat out-of-the-way restaurant in L.A.

They had breakfast at the restaurant inside the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel on the Sunset Strip a few days ago -- the pics just surfaced. They were both wearing shades and sitting away from the normies.

As you know, Tom was the voice of Woody, and Tim voiced Buzz Lightyear in the 1995 flick. There have been several sequels since, but neither were in the last one -- "Lightyear" -- which was released in June.

Tom took a shot at "Lightyear" producers during an interview, saying he wanted to do the sequel with Tim but "they didn't let Tim Allen do it. I don't understand that." It's clearly politics -- Tim's don't align with most of Hollywood, but Tom clearly doesn't think that matters.

Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are taking their talents to infinity and beyond -- the Formula 1 stars have voiceover gigs in Disney's new "Lightyear" movie!!

The Scuderia Ferrari drivers teamed up with the Mouse for cameos in the Buzz Lightyear origin story ... with Charles slated to be featured in the Italian version of the flick, and Carlos joining the Spanish version.

Unclear what role they have in the movie ... but Ferrari said in an announcement they are playing the same character.

The duo appeared in promos for the project ... with Leclerc saying this was his first time getting in the booth.

"It was a completely different experience from what I have done in the past," Leclerc said Wednesday.

Leclerc says the partnership is a perfect fit -- he says he has a lot of similarities with the "Toy Story" spaceman ... pointing out they both love to go fast and have supportive families and teams behind them.

This isn't the first Formula 1/Disney crossover -- Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher have had guest spots in the "Cars" franchise.

Estelle Harris, who brilliantly played George Costanza's mom, has died.

Estelle passed away Saturday at her home in Palm Desert, CA, just outside of Palm Springs.  Her son Glen says she died from natural causes, adding, "It is with the greatest remorse and sadness to announce that Estelle Harris has passed on this evening at 6:25."

Glen went on to say, "Her kindness, passion, sensitivity, humor, empathy, and love were practically unrivaled, and she will be terribly missed by all those who knew her."

Estelle played a loud, opinionated and confrontational mom who was quick to take on her hubby and George at the drop of a hat. Short story ... she was hysterical!

And, speaking of story ... Estelle played Mrs. Potato Head in the 3 most recent 'Toy Story' flicks. There's a lot more to her CV ... "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody," "Tarzan II," "The Pinocchio Shop," and tons of other voiceover work.

Estelle was a New Yorker by birth and got her big break on "Night Court."

She was married to Sy Harris from 1953 to 2021, when he died. She's survived by 3 kids -- Eric, Glen and Taryn, as well as 3 grandsons and a great-grandson.

Estelle was 93.

RIP

Tim Allen's political beliefs didn't play a factor in the re-casting of his signature Buzz Lightyear character -- Disney honchos simply believed the character needed a fresh voice for a new storyline ... TMZ has learned.

Many folks were confused this week when the Mouse House announced its beloved "Toy Story" character would have a new voice a la Chris Evans. Fans speculated Tim Allen's political beliefs, namely his support for former President Donald Trump, might've had something to do with the new casting.

We've spoken to sources with direct knowledge who tell us Disney has no issue with Tim or with his political leanings. The new movie, "Lightyear" is about the real astronaut that toy Buzz is based on, and to have the same voice wouldn't make sense.

In fact, our sources say Tim Allen still works with Disney on various "Toy Story" projects when they come up involving the OG Buzz ... another indicator there's no beef.

Disney is changing with the times, and that requires deleting a casting couch-like scene from "Toy Story 2" that's eerily reminiscent to scores of allegations against Harvey Weinstein.

The scene in question is a produced "outtake" at the end of the 1999 film showing the character Stinky Pete the Prospector down on one knee chatting up 2 Barbie dolls. Pete tells 'em he can get them parts in "Toy Story 3" while ogling them from head to toe.

Fans who buy new Blu-ray and digital versions of the animated film will notice the scene's completely been scrapped -- a clear acknowledgment by Disney a lot has changed in 20 years.

Of course, the so-called casting couch practices in Hollywood were publicly exposed when a string of actors -- from Ashley Judd and Paz de la Huerta to Lupita Nyong'o -- all accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct.

Accusations against the movie mogul sparked the #MeToo movement ... and triggered a string of firings and resignations throughout show biz, including at Disney.

John Ratzenberger -- the voice of Hamm in the 'Toy Story' franchise -- says there's an upside parents don't think about when it comes to all the heartbreaking scenes in the films.

The actor -- also known as Cliff Clavin on "Cheers" before his days as a talking piggy bank -- joined "TMZ Live" Friday to talk about the newly released "Toy Story 4" ... and he answered a serious question in an unexpected and hilarious way.

Damn, John!!!

He makes a good point, though -- sadness is part of life, so maybe it's best to have children learn to work through it before an inevitable death of a grandparent.

Parents who aren't so sure can take solace, though ... Ratzenberger says the 4th installment isn't that sad.

John also reveals how director Josh Cooley was able to keep Don Rickles in the latest movie as the voice of Mr. Potato Head despite Don's passing in 2017. Pretty cool stuff.