Legendary actor and comedianDon Ricklespassed away at the age of 90 earlier this week. Many of us are still very sad that he is gone, but he left behind a tremendous and incredible body of work for us to admire and enjoy for many years to come. For many younger folks out there, they probably know him best as the voice of Mr. Potato Head in theToy Storymovies. Disney and Pixar are currently working onToy Story 4and sadly,Don Rickleshadn’t recorded any of his dialogue for the movie prior to his passing.
The Hollywood Reporterwas able to confirm thatDon Rickleshadn’t yet recorded any dialogue as Mr. Potato Head forToy Story 4. Pixar is reportedly in the process of doing rewrites on the movie and he had not yet been called in to record is part. It isn’t clear how large of a role Mr. Potato Head was going to have inToy Story 4, but he was a significant character in the first threeToy Storymovies, so it is easy to imagine that he would at least be in this new movie a reasonable amount. It also isn’t clear if Pixar is going to change things now thatDon Rickleswon’t be able to voice the character inToy Story 4.
Not a whole lot is known aboutToy Story 4at the moment, but it is said that the movie is going to focus on the gang looking for Bo Peep, who didn’t appear inToy Story 3. The movie is set to be co-directed byJosh CooleyandJohn Lasseter, who directed the originalToy Story. Following the news ofDon Rickles' passing, Pixar released a statement fromLasseter, honoring the late comedian who had been a big part of theToy Story franchise. Here is what he had to say.
“Don Rickles was a comic genius, and here at Pixar we were honored to also call him a friend. The wit, personality, and incredible timing he brought toMr. Potato Headlit up the character and made him an essential part of theToy Storyensemble. Even though Mr. Potato Head’s facial features fell off in everyToy Storymovie his heart never left him, that was because of Don. We will miss him tremendously.”
Pixar has had many hits over the years, but the originalToy Storyput them on the map and it has been their most reliable and bankable franchise over the years. To date, the movies have grossed nearly $2 billion at the box office combined, withToy Story 3pulling in a very impressive $1.06 billion on its own back in 2010. What’s more is thatToy StoryandToy Story 2both hold a perfect score of 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, withToy Story 3boasting a nearly perfect 99 percent approval rating.
It is possible that Pixar will end up recasting the role of Mr. Potato Head forToy Story 4. They have already done this in the past whenJim Varney, who voiced Slinky Dog, passed away andBlake Clarkstepped into to replace him. It is unclear at this point in time how Disney and Pixar will approach it, but we’ll likely find out in the relatively near future.Toy Story 4 is set for release on June 25, 2025.
