Pixar’s hit sequel Inside Out 2 is the highest-grossing animated film in history, besting Frozen II. Raking in over $1.6 billion, the movie is credited with helping to save the summer box office.
Meg LeFauve and co-writer Dave Holstein say that while there was no pressure to write a mega-hit, it took a lot of moving parts to make it happen.
“It’s a lot of balls, a lot of voices, and the writer really has to be the centering story person to keep making this a story, keep making things stay on track, and ultimately get to where the director wants to go,” says LeFauve. “Now add in that Inside Out has three levels: It’s Riley’s story, Joy’s story, and Anxiety in headquarters. It’s really a game of chess to actually pull off the writing.”
“It’s like writing a play inside a dishwasher,” Holstein agrees. “You’re constantly in this churn of all three levels of production — writing, shooting, and editing at the same time and out of order… my page count was over 700 pages. Trying to get it right and get it perfect is the Pixar way.”