What Is The Pixar Shared Universe Theory? Inside Out 2 Trailer Confirms Major Speculations; DEETs INSIDE

The trailer for Inside Out 2, set to release on June 14, confirms the Pixar shared universe theory and introduces an additional emotion, anxiety, alongside the previously introduced emotions of Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust.

Published on Apr 04, 2024  |  09:23 PM IST |  219.1K
Inside Out 2 Trailer Confirms The Pixar Shared Universe Theory
Inside Out 2 (PC: IMDb)

The new trailer for Inside Out 2 confirms the Pixar shared universe theory. The sequel, set to release on June 14, features some new emotion, Anxiety, Boredom, Envy and Embarrassment alongside the previously introduced emotions of Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust. Fans eagerly await the release of the Pixar film.

Inside Out premiered in 2015 and followed a young Riley as she was uprooted by her parents from the Midwest to San Francisco. Following the move, Riley’s emotions — Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness — “conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house, and school,” per the synopsis.

Inside Out 2 confirms the Pixar shared universe theory

Inside Out 2's trailer features an easter egg, confirming the Pixar shared universe theory. This theory, created by Jon Negroni and popularized by the Super Carlin Brothers, states that every Pixar film takes place in the same universe and that elements from each film influence the others.

Inside Out 2's new trailer is the first time that one of the films acknowledges the fact that the different titles are all in the same universe, and it does so by subtly revealing a poster on the wall.

Inside Out 2 (IMDb)

In the trailer, Riley is in her bedroom. Behind her, a poster of a band called 4*Town is hung on the wall. This band was present in Pixar's recent Turning Red movie, which means that Riley's having a poster of them on her wall definitively places Inside Out and Turning Red in the same universe.

Turning Red is set in 2002, and the first Inside Out is set in 2007, so the latter's sequel likely takes place a few years later. So, although Turning Red and Inside Out 2 are likely roughly around eight years apart, it still seems as though the 4*Town band is still together. More importantly, it confirms and continues the Pixar shared universe theory.

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The original Inside Out movie shares similarities with Jon Negroni's Pixar Theory, with a rat in Inside Out resembling Remy from Ratatoullie and Carl and Ellie's wedding from Up can be seen in a memory. Negroni also suggested Riley's imaginary friend, Bing Bong, was a monster from Monsters Inc. who began as her personal monster.

Negroni revealed that this would explain why Bing Bong has animal-like features from cats, elephants, and dolphins because the monsters in Monsters Inc. have animal characteristics themselves.

The Super Carlin Brothers explained in a YouTube video how Turning Red connects to the wider Pixar shared universe. In that video, Jonathan "J" Carlin dives into how the witch from Brave is Boo from Monsters Inc., who is also the mother of Meilin's friend, Abby, in Turning Red.

In Brave, there is a carving of Sully in the witch's hut, and she has dozens of wooden bears that she has carved out because she always remembers Sully.

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J Carlin described that Boo could have learned a lot about bear magic from Meilin's family in Turning Red and also could have learned about time travel from the Lightyear movie, which she would have been able to use infinitely to make sure that Sully is never forgotten.

Since the witch can turn people into bears in Brave, this theory also suggests that Boo could have traveled back in time to utilize that magic in the past as well.

Inside Out 2 (IMDb)

More about the upcoming Inside Out 2

Inside Out 2 is an upcoming American animated coming-of-age film directed by Kelsey Mann and produced by Mark Nielsen. The sequel to Inside Out (2015) is based on a screenplay by Meg LeFauve, Dave Holstein, and Jon Zack, with a story by Leslie Dixon and a writing team of Kirsten Smith and Karen McCullah.

Inside Out 2 was first announced in September 2022 during the D23 Expo announcement, with Mann, Nielsen, and LeFauve attached as director, producer, and writer, respectively, while Poehler was revealed to reprise her role in the film. Hale, Lapira, and Hawke joined the cast in November 2023. The film features Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter's "five to 27 emotions" idea from the first film that Mann pitched during its production to utilize "truthful" worldbuilding.

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Pixar Animation Studios describes the sequel as, "Inside Out 2 returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions! Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who've long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren't sure how to feel when Anxiety shows up. And it looks like she's not alone."

Following are the cast of the movie;

  • Amy Poehler as Joy
  • Phyllis Smith as Sadness
  • Lewis Black as Anger
  • Tony Hale as Fear
  • Liza Lapira as Disgust
  • Maya Hawke as Anxiety
  • Ayo Edebiri as Envy
  • Adèle Exarchopoulos as Ennui
  • Paul Walter Hauser as Embarrassment
  • Kensington Tallman as Riley Andersen
  • Diane Lane as Mrs. Andersen
  • Kyle MacLachlan as Mr. Andersen
  • Lilimar as Valentina "Val" Ortz
  • Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green and Grace Lu as Riley's friends
  • Yvette Nicole Brown as Coach Roberts
  • John Ratzenberger as Fritz
  • June Squibb as Nostalgia

In addition, Sarayu Blue, Flea, Ron Funches, Dave Goelz, James Austin Johnson, Bobby Moynihan, Frank Oz, Paula Pell, Paula Poundstone, Kendall Coyne Schofield, Kirk Thatcher, and Yong Yea have been cast in undisclosed roles.

ALSO READ: Inside Out 2: Everything To Know About New Emotions; From Envy To Embarrassment

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