Woody (Toy Story)

Sheriff Woody
Toy Story character
First appearance	Toy Story (1995)
Last appearance	Toy Story 3 (2010)
Created by	John Lasseter
Portrayed by	Tom Hanks (English, films) Jim Hanks (English, other media) Mehmet Ali Erbil (Turkish, films) Jean-Philippe Puymartin (French, films) Alain Zouvi (Quebec, films) Peer Augustinski (German, films) Óscar Barberán (Spanish, films) Carlos Segundo (Mexican, films) Fabrizio Frizzi (Italian, films) Toshiaki Karasawa (Japanese, films) Jang Sea-Joon (Korean, Toy Story) Gim Seung-Jun (Korean, subsequent appearances)
In-universe information
Nickname	Cowboy, Sheriff (called by Buzz, Jessie, and Bo Peep on different occasions)
Species	Humanoid pull-string doll
Gender	Male
Title	Sheriff
Occupation	Cowboy, Leader of Andy's Room
Family	Andy's Toys, Andy, Molly, Ms.Davis

Sheriff Woody, more commonly referred to as simply Woody is a fictional character that first appeared in the CGI animated film Toy Story, and its sequels Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3. He is voiced by Tom Hanks in the Toy Story films, and by his brother Jim Hanks in other media.

Conception and creation

Woody was originally to be a ventriloquist's dummy and was named after Western actor Woody Strode. John Lasseter always wanted Tom Hanks to play the character of Woody. Lasseter claimed Hanks "... has the ability to take emotions and make them appealing. Even if the character, like the one in A League of Their Own, is down-and-out and despicable." Early test footage, using Hanks' voice from Turner and Hooch, convinced Hanks to sign on to the film. Toy Story was Hanks's first animated film role.

History

In the beginning of Toy Story, Woody coordinates a reconnaissance mission around his owner Andy's birthday party in the days before Andy's family move to their new house. To his dismay, Andy receives a new action figure in the form of space ranger Buzz Lightyear, whose impressive features soon see Buzz replacing Woody as Andy's favorite toy. As the former de facto leader of Andy's toys, Woody is disappointed and resentful at his replacement. Hoping to replace Buzz on a family outing one evening, he plans to trap Buzz in a gap behind Andy's desk. However, when the plan goes awry and results in Buzz being knocked out a window, Woody is accused by the other toys of attempting to murder Buzz out of jealousy and is almost punished before Woody is taken with Andy to the space-themed Pizza Planet restaurant. While Andy's mother refuels the car at a gas station, Woody ponders how he can return to Andy's room alone. Suddenly, he is confronted by Buzz and the two end up fighting and accidentally land outside the car, which drives off and leaves the two stranded. Woody spots a truck bound for Pizza Planet and plans to rendezvous with Andy there. Realizing that he will face the wrath of the other toys if he returns alone, Woody convinces Buzz that the truck will take them to a spaceship. At Pizza Planet, Buzz stuffs himself into a rocket-shaped claw game machine, forcing Woody to clamber into the machine to try and rescue him. Woody and Buzz are then captured by Andy's next-door neighbor, the toy-destroying Sid Phillips. As Woody desperately attempts to escape from Sid's house before Andy's family's moving day, Buzz realizes that he is in fact a toy and becomes a depressed burden to Woody. In the film's turning point, Woody admits that Buzz is a "cool toy", but despairs that he himself stands no chance of being Andy's favorite. When Buzz is taken away by Sid to be destroyed with a firework rocket, Woody teams up with Sid's mutant toys and stages a rescue of Buzz, terrifying Sid into running away in fear of his own toys. Woody and Buzz climb into the moving van, attracting the attention of Sid's dog Scud. When Buzz sacrifices himself to save Woody by tackling the dog, Woody attempts to rescue Buzz with Andy's RC. However, he is then chucked out of the van by the other toys, who mistakenly believed that Woody was trying to get rid of RC. When the RC's batteries run out, Woody realizes that he can ignite Buzz's rocket and manages to toss RC into the moving truck just as he and Buzz go soaring into the air. They glide in the air until they land safely inside Andy's car. At the end of the film, Woody and Buzz stage another reconnaissance mission to prepare for the new toy arrivals. As Woody wonders what gift may be worse than Buzz, Andy receives a puppy, much to his and Buzz's dread.

In Toy Story 2, Andy accidentally tears Woody's arm while playing with him before leaving for cowboy camp (an annual trip he makes with Woody), leaving Woody on the shelf. Woody begins to have recurring nightmares of becoming a disused toy, but wakes to find that Wheezy, a penguin toy whose squeaker is broken, is being taken by Andy's mother to be sold at a yard sale. Woody rescues Wheezy with the help of Andy's dog Buster, but he is accidentally left behind at the yard sale and subsequently stolen by Al McWhiggin, the owner of Al's Toy Barn. Woody is brought to Al's apartment, where he discovers that he is a toy created from Woody's Roundup, a popular children's television show from the 1950s. By acquiring him, Al now has a complete collection of the show's merchandise, which he plans to sell to a toy museum in Tokyo, Japan. Woody meets the toy versions of the show's co-stars: his sidekick Jessie, his horse Bullseye, and an old prospector named Stinky Pete formerly known as 'The Prospector' (who is still apparently in mint condition in his original box). The three are excited to be going to Japan, but knowing that he is still Andy's toy, Woody has doubts and tries to escape the apartment without success. Later, Woody's arm is repaired and he is given a fresh paint job, which he appreciates. He slowly warms up to the idea of going to Japan, particularly after learning that Jessie was once the favorite toy of a little girl named Emily who gave her away after growing up and he is convinced by Stinky Pete that, if he returns to Andy, he will eventually be thrown away when he grows up, whereas if he goes to Japan, he will be remembered and treasured forever. He is later confronted by Buzz and the other toys, who try to take him home. While Woody initially turns his back on them, he soon comes to his senses and invites the other toys from Woody's Roundup to come along, but is denied freedom by Stinky Pete, who is determined to go to Japan. Woody and the rest of the collection are packed up for shipping overseas and taken to the Tri-County Airport. Woody gets into a spat with the Prospector in the baggage handling area, during which the old rip in his arm is reopened. Woody is eventually able to defeat the Prospector with help from the other toys. While Bullseye is rescued, Jessie is loaded into the plane's cargo hold, forcing Woody to slip on board and extract her from the cargo hold just before the plane takes off. Woody and the others happily return home, where his arm is once again repaired (Andy's fix is somewhat lopsided, but Woody takes this as a badge of pride). Woody and Buzz now accept the fact that Andy will eventually grow up, but even after he does, they will still be there for each other.

Characteristics

Woody is an old-fashioned pull-string cowboy doll. The voice-box that is activated by the pull-string says many simple phrases such as "Reach for the sky!" and "You're my favorite deputy!" As mentioned in Toy Story 2, his construction includes an "original hand-painted face, natural dyed-blanket stitched vest, and hand-stitched poly-vinyl hat". He is Andy's favorite toy since kindergarten, with a special spot on the bed, and is the leader of the toys in Andy's room. In Toy Story 2 it is revealed that he is based on the main character from a popular 1950s TV Show, "Woody's Roundup". When Al is bargaining with Andy's mom in an attempt to take Woody, Andy's mom declines Al's bargain saying it to be "an old family heirloom." Stinky Pete also directly refers to him as a hand-me-down toy later in the movie. He is voiced by Tom Hanks in the two films and by his brother Jim Hanks on other occasions.

Although he has been deemed the boss in Andy's room, Woody is somewhat of a flawed character as seen in both movies, as he has random bouts of jealousy, anger, frustration, and feelings of inadequacy regarding his role many times. He was once described by Buzz Lightyear as a "sad, strange little man" and did little to dispel this accusation.

Cultural impact

Reception

Tom Hanks's vocal performance as Sheriff Woody was received positively by film critics. Susan Wloszczyna of USA Today approved of the selection of Hanks for the lead role of Woody. Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times stated that Tom Hanks "brings an invaluable heft and believability to Woody."