Chris Evans is heading to infinity and beyond in his latest film.
The actor is voicing the iconic Toy Story animated character Buzz Lightyear in the upcoming Pixar movie, Lightyear. After announcing the casting last year, a newly released teaser trailer for the project dropped on Wednesday, showing Buzz as he is just beginning his journey to becoming an astronaut.
While we don’t get to hear Evans speak much in the teaser, it is the first glimpse we’re getting at his interpretation of the character. Plus, he does deliver half of his character’s famous catchphrase: “To infinity and … ” Of course, the trailer comes to an end before he can add the word “beyond,” so you’ll just have to hit the theaters for the full thing.
In a press release that was sent out on October 27, the Avengers: Infinity War star called voicing Buzz Lightyear “a dream come true.”
“Anyone who knows me knows that my love for animated films runs deep,” he said. “I can’t believe that I get to be a part of the Pixar family and work with these truly brilliant artists who tell stories unlike anyone else.”
Evans continued, “Watching them work is nothing short of magic. I pinch myself every day.”
Lightyear tells the origin story of Buzz, a character that was first introduced in 1995’s Toy Story and voiced by Tim Allen. Since then, the beloved toy has appeared in multiple iterations of the film, most recently in 2019’s Toy Story 4.
The new film tells the story of the character Buzz the toy is based on, not the actual toy featured in the original film, Director Angus MacLane clarified to Entertainment Weekly.
“‘Set in the world of Toy Story’ is kind of weird. Another way to get at it, it‘s a straightforward sci-fi action film about the Buzz Lightyear character,” MacLane explained. “In the Toy Story universe, it would be like a movie that maybe Andy would have seen, that would have made him want a Buzz Lightyear figure.”
He went on to say, “The movie doesn‘t end and then you see Andy eating popcorn. This is its own thing … This is standalone. It’s the Buzz Lightyear movie. It‘s that character but as the space ranger, not as the toy.”
Lightyear is set to premiere on June 17, 2022.