Sequels to beloved films always tread on delicate ground. They must try and live up to the expectations of the first film without simply repeating what worked first time around. Most come up short, but a few manage to pull off the trick. Pixar faced this massive challenge on Toy Story 2 but pulled it off with aplomb.
But how things could have been so different. Disney were originally set on making a straight-to-video release as part of its strategy to produce sequels of varying quality to some of its classic films. Thankfully, Pixar head honcho, John Lasseter, was brought in and decided that if a sequel was to be made, that it should be done properly. Therefore, Lasseter and his team set about crafting the film, having ditched everything that had been put in place up to that point. Due to this, they had a restricted production period before the expected date of release. Remarkably, they were successful, producing a movie that not only met the standard of the original but, in many people’s opinions, even managed to surpass it.
The test for a sequel is whether it can build on the original film and justify its own existence, and this is test that Toy Story 2 passes with flying colours. Many people questioned whether Pixar could live up to their own standards but by doing just that, and even exceeding them, they were able to mark themselves out as a studio to watch.