Pixar’s latest sequel Inside Out 2 knows you’re messy and loves you anyway

Courtesy Pixar/Disney

Recently, news hit that Pixar was switching up its creative strategy in the wake of several high-profile flops. That strategy pointed most damningly at movies like Onward, Soul, Luca, Turning Red and Elemental — movies that took the studio in new creative directions (and in Soul and Turning Red’s cases, culturally diverse ones). Instead, according to the studio’s president Jim Morris, they’re pivoting to focus more on nostalgia and bankable hits.

There are many reasons why these recent releases didn’t do well, most of which have to do with unfortunate timing and bad faith, not quality; pandemic and pandemic-adjacent release dates plus simultaneous streaming didn’t do Onward, Luca or Turning Red any favors. In any case, prepare for the continued franchising of existing Pixar movies, because you’ll be seeing a lot of them in the coming years (Toy Story 5 is headed our way in 2026). 

It’s disappointing to see such an innovative studio succumb to the money-centric, creatively bankrupt path so many others have followed. However, the silver lining is that Pixar has historically done well at developing stories and characters over multiple movies. Inside Out 2 is a case in point, taking a powerful concept and taking it to new places. It may not pack the profound emotional heft of its predecessor, but it’s thoughtful and endearing just the same.

When we last left Riley and her emotions—Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Tony Hale), Anger (Lewis Black) and Disgust (Liza Lapira) — Riley had finally settled in to a new life in San Francisco with her parents. Now Riley’s preparing for high school. She’s a newly-minted teenager, which means everything is about to change.

Overnight, Joy and her compatriots are thrown together with a new set of emotions: Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos), Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), Envy (Ayo Edebiri) and, most daunting of all, Anxiety (Maya Hawke). Their arrival coincides with Riley’s big trip to a hockey skills camp, where she also learns her best friends and longtime teammates will be attending a different high school in the fall. 

Joy, as always, tries her best to keep everything in check. This time, however, Anxiety wins out, banishing the original four emotions to the back of Riley’s mind. To restore Riley’s rapidly deteriorating sense of self, Joy and her friends will have to make their way back to headquarters and prove to Riley’s new emotions that they still have a place in her life—before the overeager newbies do too much damage.

Inside Out broke so much new ground by reminding us that we each contain multitudes (literally, in the movie’s case) and treating a relatable situation—moving to a new city—with appropriate significance and empathy. Inside Out 2 does the same thing in ways that feel just as universal, if not more so; who among us hasn’t tried to impress a new group of friends and driven ourselves to sleeplessness out of second-guessing and overthinking?

Courtesy Pixar/Disney

There are fun new areas to explore as well: the vault where Riley stores her deepest secrets, “Mount Crushmore,” where her big crushes (celebrities, classmates, and fictional characters alike) live, and the new and terrifying “sar-chasm,” that can appear at a moment’s notice. There are cartoon characters Riley used to love, but now pretends not to, and a video game character with astounding anime hair, glitchy physicality and the lamest finishing move known to man. There is no Bing Bong this time out, which though it makes things less deeply felt, is probably a blessing—you’ll be spared the heartbreaking sobs of a new generation of traumatized kiddos.

Underpinning all of it is a story that considers not just the simple needs each of us have (to be safe, happy and cared for physically and emotionally), but also the much messier parts of ourselves that we develop to deal with those needs as we get older. While the first Inside Out argued that it doesn’t have to be difficult for each of us to be considered whole human beings, the sequel is so relatable that the idea of having self-knowledge in the face of complex and often negative emotions feels that much more profound. 

While Inside Out 2 wasn’t totally necessary, it makes a good case for feeling like a natural progression. This isn’t new territory, but it does further develop the first film’s central ideas in meaningful ways. You may not cry your eyes out this time around, but don’t be surprised if you get a little misty, or be just a little kinder to yourself on the way out of the theater.