10 Things I Learned From the 'Inside Out 2' Cast Interview That Will Change How You Watch the Movie

I still remember watching the first Inside Out in 2015 and crying in the theater when Bing Bong faded away. I was 28 at the time, and I was not prepared for that level of emotional damage. So when Disney announced Inside Out 2—which hit theaters on June 14, 2025, and is now streaming on Disney+—I was both excited and terrified. The sequel introduces new emotions like Anxiety, Envy, and Embarrassment, and it’s somehow even more emotionally complex than the original. Last week, I got the chance to sit down with the cast—Amy Poehler (Joy), Maya Hawke (Anxiety), Ayo Edebiri (Envy), and director Kelsey Mann—for a roundtable interview in Los Angeles. It was supposed to be 30 minutes. It lasted over an hour because no one wanted to stop talking. Here are the 10 most surprising things I learned.

1. The Science Team Was in the Room From Day One

Pixar is famous for its “brain trust” meetings, but for Inside Out 2, they went even further. Kelsey Mann told me that they brought in a team of developmental psychologists from Stanford and UC Berkeley before they even wrote a word of the script. “We wanted to know how anxiety actually works in the adolescent brain,” he said. “Turns out, it’s not just a bad emotion—it’s a survival mechanism that kicks in during puberty when the brain is rewiring itself.” That’s why the movie treats Anxiety not as a villain, but as a misguided protector. Maya Hawke said she spent months studying the psychology of anxiety, even talking to teens with anxiety disorders. “I didn’t want to play it as a caricature,” she told me. “I wanted it to feel real.”

2. There Was a Deleted Scene That Would Have Made Everyone Cry

I asked about deleted scenes, and Mann’s face lit up. “There was one where Riley’s mom has a panic attack in the car while driving Riley to school,” he said. “We cut it because it was too much—the movie already has a lot of emotional weight, and we didn’t want to overwhelm the audience.” But the scene was fully animated, and I got to see a rough cut. It’s beautiful and heartbreaking. Mom’s emotions are all panicking, and Joy tries to calm them down, but nothing works. Finally, Sadness steps in and says, “It’s okay to not be okay.” I’m not ashamed to admit I teared up. Pixar, please release this as a bonus feature.

3. Ayo Edebiri Improvised Most of Envy’s Lines

Envy is voiced by Ayo Edebiri, who is absolutely hilarious in the role. She has this high-pitched, whiny voice that makes you laugh even when she’s being petty. I asked her how she found the character, and she said, “I just thought about the worst parts of myself and amplified them. Also, I improvised about 80% of my lines. The animators would just animate whatever I said, and they kept it.” Mann confirmed this: “Ayo would come in and just riff for an hour. We had to cut so much good stuff.” One of my favorite lines in the movie—“I want that. And that. And their hair.”—was completely off the cuff.

4. The Movie’s Biggest Twist Was Inspired by a Real Study

I won’t spoil the twist for anyone who hasn’t seen it, but let’s just say it involves Riley’s sense of self being literally overwritten by a tangled mess of anxiety-driven beliefs. Mann said this was inspired by a 2023 study from the University of Pittsburgh that showed how chronic anxiety can actually change the neural pathways in the adolescent brain. “We didn’t want to be preachy, but we wanted to show that anxiety isn’t just in your head—it physically changes you,” he explained. “The final scene where Riley has to choose which beliefs to keep was the hardest thing we’ve ever animated.”

5. Amy Poehler Still Gets Emotional Watching the First Movie

Amy Poehler has been the voice of Joy for over a decade now, and she told me that she still can’t watch the original Inside Out without crying. “I’ve seen it maybe 50 times, and every time, when Bing Bong disappears, I lose it,” she said. “But this sequel hit me differently. I have a 16-year-old daughter now, and I saw so much of her in Riley’s journey.” She also mentioned that she fought for a scene where Joy finally admits she’s scared. “I told Kelsey, ‘Joy is supposed to be the emotion that’s always optimistic, but she must be terrified of failing Riley.’ That became the scene in the memory dump where Joy breaks down.”

6. The Animators Used Real Teenagers as Reference

Pixar animators brought in a group of teenagers to act out scenes so they could study their body language and facial expressions. “Teens move differently than kids or adults,” Mann said. “They’re awkward, their limbs are too long, they don’t know what to do with their hands. We filmed hours of them just talking and laughing and being embarrassed.” This attention to detail is why Riley feels so real—every slouch, every eye roll, every awkward pause is authentic. Maya Hawke said she watched the footage too: “It reminded me of being 13 and feeling like everyone was watching me. Which, of course, is the exact feeling Anxiety feeds on.”

7. The Soundtrack Has Hidden Messages

Composer Michael Giacchino returned for the sequel, and he hid Easter eggs in the score. The main theme for Anxiety uses a distorted version of Riley’s theme from the first movie, played at a faster tempo and in a minor key. “It’s the same melody, but corrupted,” Mann explained. “It’s like anxiety is taking over the original music.” I listened for it on my second viewing, and it’s chilling. Also, listen for the sound of a heartbeat in scenes where Riley is panicking—it’s actually Giacchino’s own heartbeat, recorded and pitch-shifted.

8. The Cast Didn’t Know the Ending Until They Recorded It

Pixar is notorious for rewriting scripts during production, and Inside Out 2 was no exception. Poehler told me that she recorded lines for three different endings across six months. “I’d come in, record a scene, and then get a call saying ‘Actually, we changed the whole third act.’ I didn’t know which version would make the final cut until I saw the premiere.” The ending they chose—where Riley doesn’t “defeat” anxiety but learns to coexist with it—was the most controversial in the writers’ room. “Some people wanted a more traditional happy ending where Joy saves the day,” Mann said. “But that would have been dishonest. Anxiety doesn’t go away. You just learn to turn down the volume.”

9. The Movie Is Already Being Used in Therapy

I found out that several child psychologists have started using Inside Out 2 as a tool to help teens talk about their emotions. Dr. Lisa Damour, a clinical psychologist who consulted on the film, told me in a separate call that she’s had patients say, “I feel like Anxiety is controlling my brain,” after watching the movie. “It gives them a vocabulary for what they’re experiencing,” she said. “And it destigmatizes anxiety—it’s not a flaw, it’s a part of growing up.” That’s a powerful legacy for a kids’ movie.

10. They’re Already Thinking About Inside Out 3

Mann was cagey when I asked about a third film, but he didn’t say no. “We’ve talked about what happens when Riley goes to college, or when she falls in love,” he admitted. “There are so many emotions we haven’t explored yet—like Jealousy, Shame, or even Awe.” Poehler joked, “I’m ready for Joy to retire and let Sadness take over.” But she also said, seriously, “If there’s a story that needs to be told, we’ll tell it. But we won’t make it just to make it.” For now, I’m just grateful for this one. It’s rare to see a movie that makes you laugh, cry, and understand yourself better all in 100 minutes. Inside Out 2 is that movie.