Buzz and Woody's 30-Year Bond: The Friendship That Defines Toy Story

When Tim Allen and Tom Hanks first met on the set of the original Toy Story back in 1995, neither probably imagined they’d spend three decades bringing the world’s most iconic toy duo to life—or that their on-screen chemistry would mirror a genuine, deep friendship off-screen.

In a candid conversation with Us Weekly, the 72-year-old Allen opens up about what makes his relationship with the 69-year-old Hanks tick. It’s not the kind of Hollywood friendships you hear about every other week. Allen describes it as feeling almost familial, a connection that transcends the surface and runs surprisingly deep. What’s striking is how honestly he frames it:“We completely, whether surface or subsurface, completely connected as two individuals. Almost like we’re related.”

But the path to this three-decade bond had an unexpected beginning. Before they ever voiced Buzz and Woody, Allen actually turned down a chance to step into Hanks’shoes—literally. When Disney approached him about doing a TV version of Turner and Hooch (inspired by Hanks’1989 film), Allen declined. As a successful stand-up comic, he had principles about not redoing someone else’s work, no matter how tempting the paycheck.“Comics don’t do that,”he explains, with a nod to Hanks’star power at the time.

When their paths finally crossed for Toy Story, Allen recalls the instant connection despite their different backgrounds. Allen came from a large family; Hanks didn’t. Yet somehow, they found common ground on nearly everything that matters—philosophy, metaphysics, literature, military history. Allen notes with a laugh that they even look similar sometimes and“relate on so many levels that I don’t relate with anybody else.”

Of course, their bond has its quirks. Allen still hasn’t forgotten the french fry incident early on, when Hanks casually helped himself to his coworker’s plate. What started as genuine annoyance turned into laughter once Hanks began his signature move of just…keeping on eating them anyway. It’s the kind of small, human moment that somehow crystallizes a friendship—the teasing, the laughter, the realization that this person gets under your skin in the best possible way.

Three decades and five films later, Allen and Hanks will return to voice Buzz and Woody one more time in Toy Story 5, hitting theaters on Friday, June 19. And if their friendship is any measure, the magic of these characters—and the chemistry that brings them to life—isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.