What are you looking at you hockey puck?!Did you know that one of Mr. Potato Head's famed lines in Toy Story stemmed from his comedy act? When he utters, "What are you looking at you hockey puck?!", it was an actual callback to his stand-up days. When an audience member would get a little unruly, they might be met with the "you hockey puck" quip (Wikipedia).
TOY STORY 4 INCLUSION?
With the sadness of this news, we cannot help but think of his returning role on Toy Story 4. What will this mean for the rowdy russet? Will his character return? Will Pixar be able to use pre-recorded lines from previous films, or did he already begin recording lines like Tom Hanks? (Don had confirmed his return to the fourth film in July of 2015.)Of course, with the recent inclusion of Martin Hynes to the TS4 writing team, we're not sure how much of the script might be in the process of being reworked — which could mean larger changes for Mr. Potato Head's character as well. With the film being centered around the love story of Woody and Bo Peep, it's unclear how much of a role Mr. Potato Head will have, but you can guarantee that his hilarious one-liners will be prominent in at least a few scenes.
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| Image courtesy of donrickles.com & Disney•Pixar |
We believe it would be unlikely that Pixar could find another actor who would have the same vocal pacing and tone so a replacement actor wouldn't be assumed in our mind. This isn't the first time Pixar has been faced with the delicate task of a vocal actor's passing as Jim Varney (Slinky Dog), Paul Newman (Doc Hudson), and George Carlin (Fillmore), to name a few, have likewise passed between films.
We are deeply saddened by this news as Don's comedy and true warmth brought laughs to so many — his family, loved ones, and the world has truly lost a legend.
Related Posts:
- Don Rickles Confirms His Return For 'Toy Story 4'
- Love Story in 'Toy Story 4' to be Centered Around Woody and Bo Peep
- Andy's Mom to Return in 'Toy Story 4'
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