ORLANDO, Fla. — After a noticeable absence from Toy Story 3, Bo Peep is back – but she’s less damsel, more action hero.
Her signature skirt is now a cape, and as a “lost toy” she’s managed to find herself.
Actress Annie Potts reprises the role she first played in 1995. Entertainment reporter Kim Holcomb talked to her about the new movie at Toy Story Land in Disney World.
HOLCOMB: "They say you're not supposed to call it a comeback, but Bo is back and in my mind, she's better than ever.”
POTTS: “She is better than ever."
HOLCOMB: "There’s a lot of physicality, so talk to me about all of the training you had to do.”
POTTS: (laughing) “You know, it took me about a year. We worked on it for about four years, it took me about a year of that time to get all those moves down. Just to learn how to work with the staff and do all the things that you can do - it's kind of like a lightsaber.”
HOLCOMB: "What do you do or where do you go when you need to get lost for a little while?"
POTTS: "I go to the beach. It's kind of a no TV place and we just completely unplug and we talk and swim and watch the clouds go by."
HOLCOMB: "All of the Toy Story movies are ultimately about the power of imagination and cultivating that. Do you remember what the first thing was in your life that really sparked your imagination?"
POTTS: "I grew up on a farm, kind of a remote farm, and our playground was 250 acres of forest and ponds and caves and the barn was our theater. To have a rural upbringing like that was so beneficial to me. Nobody ever had to say, ‘Oh just use your imagination.’ It's like - hey, that's where I live!”
HOLCOMB: “This movie is now proof that every single Toy Story movie will make you laugh and cry. What are those guarantees in your life?”
POTTS: "My children, always. Nobody makes me laugh like my children and nobody makes me cry like my children."
HOLCOMB: “Which is part of why these movies are so effective for any age – kids love the magic of it, and adults remember.”
POTTS: "Yes – Tom (Hanks) said a very interesting thing yesterday which is - because we now have 24 years of these - when you watch a Toy Story, you become - you are - the age you were when you first saw it. Now the toys are sort of - they're more. They're greater, they're full of more heart and experience. It's life - life at its best. Life at its most challenging and life at its best."
Toy Story 4 is rated G and opens in theaters June 21.
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