Lightyear: 5 Reasons It's Not The Movie Andy Watched In Toy Story (And 3 Reasons It Is)
4. Why It Is Not: Hollywood Wouldn't Have Been This Progressive
Now just to be clear, this is a criticism of '90s Hollywood, which played things incredibly conservative when it came its popcorn fare. Because of that, if it was made back then, Lightyear would have been a far less progressive piece than the thankfully much more diverse movie we got.
No way in Gamma Quadrant Sector 4 would an early ‘90s movie have one of the most important characters be in a happy same-sex marriage. To anyone not yet in the know, Buzz’s best friend, Alisha, is shown to be in a happy marriage with another woman in the film, with her full relationship being shown in a montage like the first few minutes of Pixar’s Up - only this time, with a happy ending.
It is 2022 right now, and filmmakers still have to fight for even small moments of LGBT representation in blockbuster films. Just look at the ridiculous backlash to this film for featuring a tiny blink and you’ll miss it same-sex kiss between Alisha and her wife - and that is today’s reaction we are talking about. A ‘90s sci-fi family movie would have have been aggressively heterosexual.
The cast as well would have been far less diverse - unlikely to feature as many people of color, or even older characters as part of the main ensemble.