10 Heart-Breaking Pixar Backstories You Probably Missed

1. Where'€™s Andy€™'s Dad? - Toy Story

One of the most pertinent questions in any Disney film relates to a character who isn't even mentioned in passing. There's no sign of him having died, no indication that he's just walked out (beyond the house sale and perpetual fear of downsizing), and yet because his children exist, it's hard to resist the question of Andy's dad.

Perhaps it's unnecessary to pick away at the situation too much: Andy isn't exactly dysfunctional, and nor does he wear the traditional indicators of being the son of an absentee father (as Russell does in Up). Instead he's happy, imaginative and socially active, and questioning where his father is might be less of an important question as who cares?

But then you look at his toys and the pieces fall into place: his toys have learned everything they know of humanity from him, and their greatest fear is being abandoned. They are the manifested concerns in Andy that don't necessarily play out when he's happy and at play: they are the latent reflection of his own feelings that he was cast off in some way.

That's the greatest tragedy of Toy Story: not just that the toys will inevitably be cast off eventually, but in doing so that Andy is doing to them exactly what has happened to him.

Which other devastating sub-plots have you noticed in Disney and Pixar films? Share your thoughts below in the comments thread.