Tim Allen has finally broken his silence on his absence from the new “Toy Story” film “Lightyear.”
The 69-year-old portrayed the animated toy astronaut Buzz Lightyear in the Disney franchise from 1995 until 2019. But Chris Evans is voicing the character in 2022’s “Lightyear” — and Allen recently discussed why he was not involved in the new project.
“This is a whole new team that really had nothing to do with the first movies,” Allen told “Extra” on Wednesday.
“The short answer is I’ve stayed out of this ’cause it has nothing to do [with his character],” the “Home Improvement” alum added.
Allen recalled thinking that the flick would be “live action” with “real humans” and “not an animated thing.”
However, Allen noted: “There’s really no ‘Toy Story’ Buzz without Woody.” Woody is Buzz’s best pal and was played by Tom Hanks in the “Toy Story” films.
Allen stated that even though the new movie has “a wonderful story, it just doesn’t seem to have any connection to the toy.”
“I wish there was a better connection,” the “Santa Clause” star declared.
“Lightyear” is posed as a spinoff-prequel to “Toy Story,” showing Buzz in his early days when he put on the iconic purple and green spacesuit.
Buzz about the lack of Allen’s participation in the movie has caused a stir, with his friend Patricia Heaton recently calling out Disney for replacing Allen with Evans, 41.
The “Everybody Loves Raymond” star wrote on Twitter earlier this month: “Saw the trailer for Buzz Lightyear and all I can say is Disney/Pixar made a HUGE mistake in not casting my pal Tim Allen in the role that he originated, the role that he owns. Tim IS Buzz! Why would they completely castrate this iconic, beloved character?”
However, “Captain America” star Evans gushed over Allen’s past portrayals of Buzz during a chat with “Good Morning America” on June 17.
“My younger version would have just been pinching himself,” Evans said of taking over the role.
“Look, Tim Allen is Buzz Lightyear,” the “Knives Out” actor went on. “What he did in those movies is so iconic and so loved, and I’d be a fool not to incorporate some of his choices into this role.
“The character in this movie is the human version that the toy is based off of, so it makes sense to have a little bit of overlap, luckily for me,” Evans continued. “What Tim Allen did was pretty untouchable.”
.