Taylor Swift's die-hard fans are confident she will be releasing a new song for Toy Story 5, despite a recent denial from the animated film's creative team. .
Specifically, speculation first arose after a mysterious countdown appeared on Swift's website at 2 p.m. ET on May 2, set against a backdrop of a white cloud and pale blue wallpaper—a design similar to the one seen in Andy's bedroom in the Toy Story franchise.
The countdown soon disappeared, but the incident sparked a growing theory about a Taylor Swift/Toy Story connection, leading to Taylor's fans over-analyzing her clothing choices, a carefully worded denial from the film's director, and the appearance of rather vague billboards around the world.
Read on to learn all the details about the fan theory surrounding Swift and the movie Toy Story.
What was the purpose of the countdown timer on Taylor Swift's website?
There's no information yet about the purpose of this short-lived countdown on Swift's website. However, as we mentioned, the countdown ran until 2:00 PM ET on May 2, after which it disappeared from the site 10 minutes later.
This was enough time for fans to take screenshots of the countdown and conclude that the background was almost identical to the wallpaper seen in several Toy Story films starring Tom Hanks and Tim Allen as Woody and Buzz Lightyear, respectively.
Was Taylor Swift's wardrobe a reference to a Toy Story song?
After the countdown mix-up, Taylor Swift fans have turned their attention to her late-April outing in New York City, where she appeared to be wearing every color featured on the Toy Story 5 poster.
Specifically, Swift was photographed wearing a blue and white striped dress by Staud, with a yellow Dior Lady handbag and bright red high heels.
Taylor Swift is spotted in the West Village on April 27, 2026, in New York City. (Photo: Aeon/GC Images)
You can take a closer look at the ensemble presented above.
Toy Story director denies Taylor Swift wrote the film's ending theme song?
However, on Wednesday, Toy Story 5 director Andrew Stanton, co-director McKenna "Kenna" Harris, and producer Lindsay Collins told YouTuber Khoslaa that they, too, had seen the fan theories and were surprised.
«"I've never seen anything like this before, and it surprised us," Stanton said of the countdown. "We would be incredibly honored.".
He added: "The sad truth is that last week we were watching the music being mixed for the film and the song at the end wasn't a Taylor Swift song.".
While Stanton's comment seemed to confirm that Swift did not write the film's closing song, he did not directly say that the singer would not appear in the film again, giving fans hope.
See his comments above.
Do the "TS" billboards confirm Taylor Swift's appearance in Toy Story 5?
The latest obvious Easter reference was a mysterious billboard advertising campaign featuring yellow "TS" letters against the aforementioned blue and white cloud wallpaper and beneath a "Disney Pixar" banner.
Eagle-eyed fans quickly noticed that the billboard featured 13 clouds, which is known to be Swift's lucky number. Billboards have appeared around the world, including in the US, UK, and Canada.
Given Swift's long history with Disney—the company's streaming service, Disney+, has featured films like "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (Taylor's Version)," "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour | The Final Show," "Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions," and the documentary series "Eras Tour"—we can't blame Swift fans for continuing to embrace this theory.
The premiere of the cartoon "Toy Story 5" will take place on June 19.
The article "Why Taylor Swift Fans Are Convinced She Has a Song in 'Toy Story 5'" first appeared on TheWrap. .