Taylor Swift’s contribution to Toy Story 5 reportedly came as a surprise even to many members of the film’s production team, who had no idea the pop superstar had recorded a song for the highly anticipated sequel.
According to Variety, the film’s VFX supervisor, Thomas Jordan, opened up about the track during a panel at SXSW London on Friday (June 5). Jordan revealed that he had known about Swift’s song, “I Knew It, I Knew You,” since February—months before most of the crew learned about it.
“It turns out Taylor Swift is a huge Toy Story fan, just like many of us,” Jordan said during the discussion. “She was able to watch an early version of the film and requested to see it before it was completed. Afterward, she wrote the song and asked if we wanted to use it. And we said, ‘Uh, yes! Yes we do.’”
He added, “That happened back in February, so we’ve been keeping it under wraps ever since.”
Jordan explained that only “a very small group” of people working on Toy Story 5 were aware of Swift’s involvement. To preserve the surprise while screening the movie for early press and Pixar-Disney employees, the team even created a separate “decoy version” of the film.
“The crew that worked on Toy Story 5 didn’t know about this secret until last week,” Jordan revealed.
Writing a song for the fifth Toy Story film was a special milestone for the 14-time Grammy winner, who recently shared a heartfelt tribute to the franchise on Instagram.
“Writing this song felt like a musical departure and coming home at the same time,” Swift wrote. “Creating something for [Toy Story character] Jessie was a new challenge and also felt like second nature all at once. And being a @toystory kid from the age of 5 til now… is an adventure I plan to be on, to infinity and beyond.”
The singer-songwriter described the experience as both creatively refreshing and deeply personal, reflecting her longtime connection to the beloved Pixar series.
Swift also took a moment to acknowledge her longtime collaborator, Jack Antonoff, as well as legendary composer Randy Newman, whose classic Toy Story theme, “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” has become synonymous with the franchise.
Toy Story 5 is set to hit theaters on Friday, June 19, and will feature the return of beloved cast members Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, and Joan Cusack, who are all reprising their iconic roles in the beloved animated franchise.
