Max Borg
On March 6, 2020, Onward opened in American cinemas, only to quickly end up on digital platforms when Covid shutdowns became a serious concern (by early April, it was already available on Disney+ in the U.S.). It was the beginning of what came to be perceived as Disney’s lack of respect for its second – and arguably more successful – animation studio, as the CEO at the time, Bob Chapek, sent Pixar’s next three films – Soul, Luca and Turning Red – straight to streaming (Lightyear, released in June 2022, was granted a proper theatrical rollout due to its connection to the Toy Story franchise).
It was the end of an era for the Emeryville-based studio which, at one point, was Disney’s sole reliable and steady source of theatrical income alongside the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, proving Bob Iger had been right when one of his first major decisions as CEO in 2005 was to initiate the acquisition of Pixar. Adding to the transitional feeling, albeit unintentionally, was a detail that gained significance later on: Onward put an end to the studio’s 22-movie streak of cameos or supporting roles voiced by the company’s self-described lucky charm, John Ratzenberger.
Best known to audiences as the know-it-all Cliff Clavin on Cheers, Ratzenberger had just completed his 11-year run on the famous sitcom when John Lasseter cast him as the wiseass piggy bank Hamm in Toy Story, released in 1995. The friendship between the filmmaker – who oversaw every single Pixar project until 2017 – and the actor led to Ratzenberger becoming a regular presence in the studio’s output, putting him head and shoulders above other members of the company’s voice acting family (for comparison, the second most prolific performer, Bonnie Hunt, has only 8 titles under her belt, most recently 2019’s Toy Story 4). He also lent his voice to the two Planes films, which were not made by Pixar but take place in the Cars universe.
So ubiquitous was Ratzenberger, Pixar felt comfortable joking about it only seven movies into their collaboration: during the end credits of Cars (another end-of-an-era film, namely the last one the company produced independently before being acquired by Disney), the characters are watching “automobile” versions of previous Pixar films. Mack, voiced by Ratzenberger, complains about the “cut-rate” production value once he realizes all three films feature the same supporting actor, who sounds suspiciously familiar.
As the years went on, spotting Ratzenberger (whose roles were usually cameos outside of the Toy Story and Cars franchises, as well as A Bug’s Life) became the Pixar equivalent of recognizing Stan Lee in the Marvel movies. Unsurprisingly, as estimated by box office website The Numbers, when one includes cameos and voice work, Lee and Ratzenberger are currently first and third on the list of the most successful actors of all time, unadjusted for inflation (Samuel L. Jackson falls in between the two).
Then, in 2017, Lasseter – who was overseeing both Pixar and Disney Animation at the time – took a leave of absence, following accusations of inappropriate behavior, and exited both companies permanently at the end of 2018. Ironically, four of the Pixar films released after his departure – and all greenlit by him, due to the time it takes to complete such movies – deal with complicated relationships between parents and their children, inadvertently symbolizing the studio’s need to move forward in his absence.
When Ratzenberger failed to report for duty in Soul (although a minor character was drawn to resemble him), fans wrote it off as a singular occurrence. When his voice was nowhere to be found in subsequent movies, some speculated his political stance – he’s a known Republican, although he did take part in an ad campaign against Donald Trump’s attacks on mail-in voting – may have played a role, similar to other self-declared conservative actors who claim to have lost work in recent years.
This turned out to not be the case, as Ratzenberger has reprised some of his old roles (Inside Out 2, the Disney+ series Monsters at Work, probably the upcoming Toy Story 5). However, he’s unlikely to ever voice new characters for the studio, owing to his friendship with Lasseter and his dislike of the new management (as he reportedly said last year). In fact, he has jumped ship with the former Pixar boss, lending his talents to the Skydance Animation films Luck and Spellbound. Much like the company that gave him his break as a voice actor, he’s headed in the direction hinted at by the film that marked the end of their uninterrupted collaboration: onward.
