Tom Hanks, Tim Allen see tech as both 'a great blessing and a curse'
Tom Hanks, Tim Allen see tech as both 'a great blessing and a curse'
Brian Truitt, USA TODAYMon, June 15, 2026 at 7:33 PM UTC
0
Woody and Buzz Lightyear face a new landscape when technology becomes a larger part of their beloved kid's life in "Toy Story 5" (in theaters June 19). The two guys who give life to those animated icons, Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, know all too well what that's like.
Being the dad of a teenager is "very stressful" these days, Allen says. He's an admitted "gadget and computer and tech freak," especially when it comes to cameras and photography equipment, and his 17-year-old daughter Elizabeth notices.
"I'm never scrolling, I don't do that. We went through this TikTok thing and Snapchat, and I said, 'No,' " Allen, 73, says. "To this day, she can't take her phone into her bedroom at night. So angry about that."
Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox
Old-school toys Buzz (voiced by Tim Allen, second from right) and Woody (Tom Hanks) face new technology in the animated film "Toy Story 5."
In "Toy Story 5," an existential crisis arises when Buzz (Allen) and the rest of the toy crew, led by Jessie (voiced by Joan Cusack), are set aside when their 8-year-old owner Bonnie becomes much more interested in her new high-tech tablet named Lilypad (Greta Lee).
Lilypad creates chaos and butts heads with the old-school toys, leading to Jessie calling Woody (Hanks) for help. But her presence also leads to emotional issues for Bonnie.
Technology is "both a great blessing and a curse," says Hanks, adding that "there's magnificent things you can do" with it. He tells a story of how his youngest son, 30-year-old Truman, made a wallet out of gaffer's tape after seeing a video on the Internet.
"He still uses that wallet today, by the way, which is hilarious. There's so much that you can do that is positive. There's no doubt about it," Hanks, 69, says.
Advertisement
Tom Hanks says technology is "both a great blessing and a curse."
However, he points out a scene in the movie where Bonnie "has her feelings so crushed by what somebody types about her" on a group chat on Lilypad. "That's the yin to the yang. That's the other side of it," Hanks says. "No one has ever been hurt by a toy that they've been playing with. But here's a version of a thing that can enhance one's life, and at the same time, make somebody feel really, really, really, really terrible."
While there is the philosophical angle of taking the good with the bad, Allen notes that kids can get to the latter awfully easy. "There's improper things all over the internet for children," he says. "And they know how to get around parental controls, trust me."
His costar Cusack appreciates that "Toy Story 5" makes the point if you're distracted by your phone or computer, "you may not be spending the time it actually takes to be in the world and interact with people," she says.
"It takes effort to find the people you really click with. It doesn't just happen, and it doesn't happen with the click of a button. It happens with hanging out, and doing something, and going, 'Whoa, that person gets me and I get them.' That is a way more meaningful interaction. Nothing – not one tech toy, not one computer – can beat laughing with your friends."
Tim Allen feels it's up to parents and grandparents to give kids alternatives to tech toys.
Hanks, who has four grown children and three granddaughters between ages 10 and 15, knows all too well that you can't tell a kid, "Put that down and become interested in something." "But I said, 'Hey, put that down, and I'm going to teach you how to play canasta.' Or 'put that down and help me do the ironing,' " Hanks says.
"Or 'Let's go wash the car, and you be in charge of the soap and I'll squirt you with a hose,' " responds Allen, who wants his daughter to use her phone to "engage in the technology" and partake in photography projects with him. "It's up to us, I think, to give them the avenue to some alternative."
Adds Hanks: "Yeah, show me, don't tell me."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: In 'Toy Story 5,' Tom Hanks, Tim Allen tackle kids and tech
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
