Who is the voice of Woody in the Toy Story films?

Tom Hanks is the voice of Woody in the Toy Story films.

Woody is a pull-string cowboy doll and the central leader of Andy’s toys. Hanks provides Woody’s voice in Toy Story (1995), Toy Story 2 (1999), Toy Story 3 (2010), and Toy Story 4 (2019), giving the character his warm, anxious, occasionally jealous personality.

Pixar director John Lasseter wanted Hanks for the role because he could make even Woody’s less admirable traits appealing. Early animation tests used Hanks’s voice from Turner & Hooch to show how the performance might fit the character. Paul Newman, Robin Williams, and Clint Eastwood were reportedly considered during development, but Hanks became the defining voice.

A common mix-up is Jim Hanks, Tom Hanks’s brother. Jim voices Woody in many video games, theme-park attractions, toys, and other merchandise, but Tom voices Woody in the feature films. Woody’s full name is Sheriff Woody Pride, and his character was inspired partly by classic cowboy dolls and Howdy Doody-style puppets.