Comedian Don Rickles speaks after receiving the Johnny Carson Award during the second annual 2012 Comedy Awards in New York on April 28, 2012. Photo by Stephen Chernin/Reuters There are some voices that are hard to replace. Which is why the late Don Rickles’ iconic voice will return this summer in “Toy Story 4.”
Rickles, the comedian and actor whose pioneering brand of insult comedy earned him the nickname “Mr. Warmth,” died in 2017 at 90. He voiced Mr. Potato Head in the first three “Toy Story” films (starting in 1995), two “Toy Story” shorts, video games and the Toy Story attractions at both Disney California Adventure Park and Disney Studios in Walt Disney World.
According to People Magazine, Rickles had signed on to come back as Mr. Potato Head for the fourth installment (announced in 2014), but the comedian hadn’t yet recorded any of his parts since he died before the script was finalized. In the film, Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) and the other toys go on a road trip with their owner Bonnie and a new toy Forky. The journey turns into an unexpected reunion as Woodyh reconnects with his long-lost friend/girlfriend Bo Peep (Annie Potts).
“Of course we loved Don obviously, and after he passed, his family contacted us and asked if there was any way that we could create a performance using the recordings that we had,” director Josh Cooley told Entertainment Weekly. “Now, he signed to be in Toy Story 4. Unfortunately we did not get a chance to record him for the film.”
The team went through 25 years of lines that Rickles recorded but were never used. Mr. Potato Head’s wife, Mrs. Potato Head, voiced by Estelle Harris, is also expected to return in the fourth film.
Rickles was born and raised in Queens, New York. His father, Max, immigrated to the United States as a child from Kaunas, Lithuania. His mother, born in New York, also was the daughter of Jewish immigrants.
“Toy Story 4” is set to hit theaters June 21.
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