Toy Story 5 is set to introduce a new character named Blaze Manoukian, who is half-Armenian and half-Black, as first reported by the Armenian Film Society. The character was unveiled during an exclusive early preview event at Disneyland.
Blaze Manoukian is a confident and independent eight-year-old girl who loves animals. She is voiced by Mykal-Michelle Harris and plays a pivotal role in Jessie’s storyline.
Speaking to TheGrio, co-director Kenna Harris described how the character originated. “Bonnie is dealing with some loneliness and wants to connect with others in the film, so the first idea was just like, who is an aspirational character that we’ll just be like, ‘Yes, Bonnie, go be her friend,'” she said.
Inside Pixar, Blaze quickly became a favorite. Harris credited character designer Matt Nolte with shaping her. “Matt Nolte, one of our character designers, came up with this lovely design of Blaze. She’s Black, she’s half Armenian. She has this gorgeous curly hair,” she said. “Immediately, we were just off to the races with the tech, because that kind of hair texture was a little bit new to the Pixar studio, but luckily we had a lovely culture trust of Black colleagues at the studio who were keeping us honest and making sure that Blaze looked as fantastic as she could. She’s one of my favorite characters now. She’s so awesome.”
Designing Blaze also led Pixar to develop new animation technology capable of accurately rendering tightly coiled hair, which the studio considers a technical milestone.
Producer Lindsey Collins said Blaze drew a strong response in audience previews. “She’s actually everybody’s favorite. We previewed it with audiences. She was like number two. It was Jessie and then Blaze as the favorite character,” she said. “It was parents who were like, ‘I just want my kid to have a friend like Blaze.'”
Toy Story 5 is scheduled for release in theaters on June 19, 2026.
