Toy Story "Black Friday Reel" (partially found rough cut of Pixar animated film; 1993)

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Video from the Toy Story Special Edition Blu-Ray and DVD discussing the changes Disney wanted made and the infamous "Black Friday" reel.

Toy Story doesn't need much introduction. It was the first PIXAR feature-length film, the first all-computer-animated film, and the film that ultimately started the downfall of 2D animation. It has been highly regarded as one of the best animated films ever, lauded for its presentation and innovation.

What many people don't know, though, is that Toy Story almost didn't end up happening at all. When Disney started working with PIXAR on the project, they wanted the movie to be targeted for adults and to be released via their Touchstone company. This early version, dubbed the "Black Friday Reel", was notably a lot more cynical, crude, and dark than the final product. Due to a lack of information shared, it is not known how far this version got before the plug was pulled and full re-write was put into action. It is known that this version was full-out story-boarded and scripted. When Disney executives looked at the final product, they were less than enthused. They thought they had just seen one of the worst ideas for a film ever. The incident sparked Roy Disney to ask John Lasseter (PIXAR founder) "You seriously listened to us?".

Thankfully, the original adult version was scrapped in exchange for the classic that is known and loved today. It hasn't stopped the curious from looking for the original, however. Unfortunately a very small handful of pictures from the storyboard have been revealed via a "Making of" documentary. Beyond that, PIXAR remains too humiliated by it to let it come to light.