As all of the lead-up press defined, the Pixar film Lightyear follows the “actual” Buzz Lightyear — that means a film model of the character who impressed the toy from Pixar’s Toy Story franchise. Buzz is a grown-up Area Ranger on a bushy mission to save lots of his fellow Rangers from a harmful world, so there aren’t any toys within the film. There may be, nevertheless, a personality closely impressed by real-life toys: Sox the robotic cat, Buzz Lightyear’s private companion.

Voiced by The Good Dinosaur director Peter Sohn, Sox is assigned as Buzz’s therapeutic help after Buzz comes again from a harrowing mission in area. The robotic cat is ready to do complicated mathematical calculations and hack computer systems, but in addition likes to chase lasers and rub up towards Buzz’s leg. Director Angus MacLane tells Polygon that Sox’s design ended up being intentionally simplistic, extra like a Nineteen Nineties robotic toy than any high-tech, futuristic sci-fi android companion.

“Sox is form of like a toy, a easy animatronic toy,” MacLane says. “It’s not a really convincing animal. Nevertheless it’s doing the perfect that it may possibly. It’s the one toy within the film. It’s like a elaborate motion determine. I discover [its] restricted motion actually humorous as an animator, and it contrasts properly with every little thing else within the film.”

One other toylike trait of Sox’s? His texture. Sox isn’t metallic or plastic. He’s flocked, very similar to Calico Critters or sure sorts of Breyer Horses. As MacLane describes it, Sox’s texture is a type of glue sprayed on vinyl, with some poofy cloth hooked up.

“Flocking is humorous. Seeing these seam traces is de facto entertaining,” laughs producer Galyn Susman. However because it seems, that flocking texture additionally provides an attention-grabbing perk for an alien-filled sci-fi world. “It’s a fire-retardant materials, as a result of individuals put them in mattress with youngsters, and also you don’t need one thing flammable!”

As for why Sox is a cat as an alternative of any of the opposite attainable animal companions, the reply is fairly easy: MacLane is an enormous cat particular person.

“I believed a cat that was useful was humorous, as a result of they’re not often very useful,” he says.

Lightyear is out on Disney Plus now.