Everything You Need To Know

Pixar’s Inside Out franchise continued to expand with the release of a new spinoff series entitled Dream Productions which arrived on Disney+ in late 2024. Set between the first and second Inside Out movies, Dream Productions centers on the corner of Riley’s head that is responsible for producing all of her dreams. Modeled after a film studio, the titular production company faces the usual trials and tribulations of fast-paced schedules and razor-thin budgets all to help Riley get a good night’s sleep and make sense of the world around her.

Much like Pixar’s Monsters at Work series, Dream Productions explores another aspect of the Inside Out franchise, and expands upon a moment that was shown briefly in the first film. Inside Out 2‘s massive box office success has proven that the series is another bona fide Pixar blockbuster, but Dream Productions offered new storytelling possibilities without the grandeur of a theatrical release. Though significantly smaller in scale than the Pixar films, Dream Productions was the perfect “inbetweenquel” for the popular blockbusters.

Dream Productions Critical Reception

A Fun But Not Very Poignant Series

Unlike Pixar’s Inside Out 2 which was met with rave reviews and a heaping box office take, Dream Productions‘ reception was much more subdued. The Disney+ original series got decent marks from Screen Rant who enjoyed the imaginative storytelling, but even their more glowing review was marred by one major critique. One of the most common gripes with the series is that the story feels rushed, and it doesn’t earn its four-episode format. Running for about 90 minutes total, the series feels like a movie that was cut apart to make a miniseries.

One common point of contention is the mockumentary format, which ultimately hampers the storytelling and generally makes no sense

Outlets like IndieWire were even harsher (giving the show a D grade), while using Dream Productions as evidence that Disney doesn’t know how to execute shows well. While that reception is generally more scathing than most, others were quick to point out that the show begins to fall apart when scrutinized even slightly. One common point of contention is the mockumentary format, which ultimately hampers the storytelling and generally makes no sense because the show never answers who would be watching the in-universe documentary.

Dream Productions
premiered all four episodes on December 11, 2024.

Dream Productions Cast Details

Riley’s Original Emotions Also Appear

The cast of Inside Out 2 was much larger than its predecessor, but only Riley’s classic emotions appeared in Dream Productions because it takes place before the events of the sequel. Kensington Tallman returned to voice Riley once again, and she was joined by Amy Poehler (Joy), Phyllis Smith (Sadness), Lewis Black (Anger), Tony Hale (Fear), and Liza Lapira (Disgust), her original emotions.

Despite a host of returning characters appearing, the bulk of the show’s cast is made up of new characters. Paula Pell’s Paula Persimmon (Dream Productions’ intrepid director) is the central focus of the series alongside Xeni, (played by Richard Ayoade) an aspiring young dream maker.

The cast of Dream Productions includes:

Dream Productions Trailers

Watch The Full Trailers Below

In September 2024, Disney revealed the first official look at Dream Productions via a trailer for the new limited series. Opening with a mockumentary style interview with Joy, the teaser then shows behind-the-scenes antics at the eponymous studio. Though a lot of the story is kept out of the trailer, the teaser does establish the wacky tone of the Inside Out spinoff.

Just a few weeks before the show’s debut, Disney revealed a full trailer for Dream Productions which finally revealed a few more key details about the miniseries. After a short intro by Joy, the trailer then shifts to the Dream Productions backlot where director Paula Persimmon struggles to keep things fresh and new. Various characters are interviewed, including the ambitious Xeni, before it’s revealed that Paula will get demoted unless she can deliver the best dream ever.

Dream Productions Ending & Spoilers

A Perfect Bridge Between The Movies

As expected, the ending of Dream Productions put a perfect bow on the story and also served as a bridge between the sequels. All the major storylines were wrapped up neatly, and there was a finality that seemed to suggest that Dream Productions would really stay as a miniseries. Despite that, it’s still theoretically possible that the show could return for another season, but it would likely serve as a bridge between the second and third movies (if a third movie is ever actually made).