'Toy Story' spinoff 'Lightyear' lands at Disney+

The "Toy Story" spinoff movie "Lightyear" is now available on the streaming service Disney+, six weeks after its theatrical release.

This animated movie is not about the Tim Allen-voiced action figure but about the story of the man who inspired the fictional toy that prompted Andy's mom to buy it for him.

The film is classified as a sci-fi action-adventure feature that follows the origin story of the legendary Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear after he's stranded on a hostile planet 4.2 million light-years from Earth. He and his team must learn to work together to escape the evil Zurg and his dedicated robot army.

Angus MacLane, who co-directed the film "Finding Dory," served as the director of the "Toy Story" spinoff. "Lightyear" is his solo feature directorial debut.

Voice actors for the film include Chris Evans who voices the eponymous Buzz Lightyear, Taika Waititi as Mo Morrison, James Brolin as Zurg, Keke Palmer as Izzy Hawthorne, and Angus MacLane as Zyclops. It received many positive reviews and holds a "75% Certified Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

The Digital Fix reports that the film has since grossed $222 million worldwide against a $200 million production budget, setting a deplorable Pixar record with an underwhelming 64.1% at the U.S. box office.

Following the film's release on streaming services, Disney hopes this will boost "Lightyear" to a wider audience and achieve success similar to "Encanto." CNET discloses that "Encanto" received a mediocre box office performance but quickly evolved into a global phenomenon once it was released on Disney +. The "Encanto" soundtrack hit No. 1 on Billboard's music charts and "We Don't Talk About Bruno" became a TikTok meme.

"Lightyear" and all the other "Toy Story" movies are available on Disney+. They are available to stream in up to 4K quality with Dolby Vision contrast and Dolby Atmos audio on supported devices.