Joan Cusack Reveals How 30 Years as Jessie Transformed Her Voice — And What Toy Story 5 Changes Next
After decades behind the mic, Joan Cusack is reinventing Jessie — and the beloved cowgirl finally rides center stage in Toy Story 5.
Jessie has been in our lives for almost 30 years, and Joan Cusack says she finally cracked the voice-acting code — just in time for Toy Story 5.
At the London premiere, Cusack got candid
On a rare red-carpet night out — her first in 11 years — Cusack stopped at the Toy Story 5 premiere in London and told Deadline that her whole approach to Jessie has shifted over the years. Early on, she didn't fully grasp how different voice work is from live-action. Now, after decades in the booth, she feels like she truly knows how to shape a performance using only sound.
"I realized there's a real craft to it... because you can't use your face or your body and you just have to use your voice. It's kind of really hard... What's cool is Andrew Stanton, who's the director of it, he can hear it. Over the years he pushes you to get it and I feel like this time I had the craft for it and I could do it better."
Why this matters for Toy Story 5
As Toy Story 5 gets set to pull us back into the world of Andy's toys for new adventures, the longtime cast is in a reflective mood. Jessie has been a fan favorite since Cusack first saddled up in Toy Story 2, right alongside Woody and Buzz, and her relationship with the character has clearly deepened with time — and practice. It's also a neat peek behind the recording booth: actors don't hear their own voices the way the audience (or filmmakers) do, so nailing the nuance can take years of direction and repetition.
- Cusack has been Jessie for nearly three decades, starting with Toy Story 2.
- She made a rare public appearance at the Toy Story 5 London premiere — her first red carpet in 11 years.
- She says voice acting finally clicked for her: without face or body language, the entire performance has to live in the voice.
- She credited Andrew Stanton as the director on this and said he has an ear for what the performance needs, pushing her to get there.
- Compared to when she first joined the franchise, she now sees voice performance completely differently — and believes she did it better this time.
Bottom line: if Jessie sounds extra dialed-in in Toy Story 5, that's Cusack putting decades of experience to work.