Riley’s story is likely to continue into Inside Out 3, but Pixar won’t be able to avoid making this its most controversial movie yet. The film franchise has seen Riley through her major milestones, with Inside Out 2 exploring her emotional changes during puberty. The sequel was even more successful than its predecessor, meaning Pixar will surely produce more films within the franchise. There has already been talk of following Riley through all the major stages of growing up, with Inside Out 3 logically seeing the girl become an older teen.
Part of what has made the Inside Out movies so effective is how unabashedly they explore the messiness of people’s minds. Pixar has made complex psychological concepts fun and adorable while still connecting to the universal experience of emotional growing pains. In the first Inside Out movie, Riley learned to embrace even her most uncomfortable emotions rather than suppressing them, and Inside Out 2 took this even further, exploring how these messy emotions impact a sense of self. If Pixar makes Inside Out 3, it’s pretty clear what story must come next.
Riley Must Fall In Love In Inside Out 3
It’s The Natural Next Step In Riley’s Story
The first two Inside Out movies saw the early stages of Riley exploring the idea of romance. In the 2015 movie, Joy came face to face with Riley’s imaginary boyfriend, and the sequel revealed some character crushes she had established (but locked away) over the years. It’s clear that, like many young teens, Riley is on her way to falling in love for the first time, and since this is the trajectory of her story, it only makes sense that this would be a feature of Inside Out 3. Sure, not every person starts their first relationship as a teenager, but the Pixar franchise has already established that romance is something Riley is interested in.
Since whether Riley would begin a relationship in Inside Out 3 is a given, the big question would be whether the subject of Riley’s first big crush would be a boy or a girl. There have been hints throughout the first two movies that this could go either way. However, regardless of which direction Pixar chooses for Inside Out 3, it’s going to be controversial.
Riley Falling In Love Would Be Controversial Whether She Is Queer Or Not
Pixar Is Doomed If It Does & Doomed If It Doesn’t
It has long been theorized that Riley would end up being queer. The character’s experiences throughout the first two films have been deeply relatable to those in the LGBTQ+ community, especially Riley’s interactions with hockey captain Val in Inside Out 2.If this perception of Riley is correct, then Inside Out 3 is when it would be confirmed, making Riley the first openly gay primary protagonist of a Disney or Pixar film. Of course (and unfortunately), this would be a controversial choice for Inside Out 3, and Pixar would surely receive a high amount of backlash.
Pixar was forced to make changes to
Inside Out 2
for some international releases since the queer messaging was considered too much for some country’s social standards.
On the other hand, if Pixar chose to avoid this backlash by making Riley straight in Inside Out 3, it would still be a controversial choice. Inside Out 2 has already been accused of queer baiting since it’s heavily implied that Riley is LGBTQ+ but without any confirmation. It feels as if Disney is attempting to be progressive but without placing itself in danger of backlash. If Pixar’s response to this were to backpedal and make Riley straight, then those who had picked up on Inside Out‘s queer qualities would be deeply frustrated.
Pixar Has Backed Itself Into A Corner With Riley’s Romantic Ambiguity
Pixar Has To Choose A Path & Commit To It
The Inside Out movies have been massively successful. The 2024 sequel stood out amongst Pixar’s recent movies, which underperformed both critically and financially. For this reason, the Disney studio really has no choice but to keep Riley’s story going. Inside Out 3 is inevitable at this point, but this means that Pixar must choose whether Riley is queer or not—a decision it has seemingly been avoiding up to now so as not to let down one group or another. The character is just ambiguous enough that any queer coding could be denied but evident enough that it would reflect poorly on Pixar to do so.
The character is just ambiguous enough that any queer coding could be denied but evident enough that it would reflect poorly on Pixar to do so.
Ultimately, it’s evident that Pixar hasn’t done itself any favors by beating around the bush. Confirmation has to happen one way or another if the studio hopes to continue profiting off Riley’s story. Inside Out 3 will either be a triumph for the LGBTQ+ community or a severe disappointment. If the first is true, then those who oppose the community will be the ones to send backlash. Regardless, Pixar will have to think long and hard about how it approaches this and other projects.
Pixar Animation’s Inside Out tells the story of a little girl named Riley and her emotions. Inside Riley’s mind exists the emotions that control her actions: Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust, and Fear. When Riley is forced to relocate to a new city, her emotions fall out of balance with disastrous results for the young girl’s life, prompting the five emotions to work together to help Riley through her troubles.
Inside Out 2 is the sequel to the 2015 original film, which starred a young girl named Riley with a head full of emotions. – literally. With Amy Pohler as Joy, Bill Hader as fear, Mindy Kaling as Disgust, Phyllis Smith as Sadness, and Lewis Black as Anger, the all-star cast brought to life the emotions that adolescents face as they grow, change, and adapt to new situations. This sequel, currently in development, will bring Amy Pohler back as Joy, with Riley, now a teenager.
