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Why Family Island Is So Much Smaller Than Riley’s Other Islands In Inside Out 2

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Minor spoilers ahead for Inside Out 2.


Summary

  • Friendship replaces Family Island as Riley’s biggest emotional focus in
    Inside Out 2
    .
  • Teenage Riley prioritizes friendships over family in the sequel, reflecting a common adolescent feeling.
  • As Riley’s core memories change, her personality islands and external relationships also shift, illustrating
    Inside Out 2
    ‘s ability to make abstract concepts more accessible.


A sequel to Pixar’s 2015 hit, Inside Out 2 has bucked 2024’s disappointing box-office trend, garnering a whopping $295 million globally over its opening weekend. Not only is the Inside Out follow-up positioned to be the 2024 movie that dethrones Dune 2, but it’s also the best theatrical opening weekend since 2023’s Barbie, which went on to gross $1.446 billion. While Inside Out 2 has struck gold, both financially and narrative-wise, by revisiting the inventive world inside Riley’s mind, the Pixar sequel has also prompted viewers to wonder about some key differences between the Inside Out films.


Unlike the previous movie, the sequel focuses on a teenage Riley (Kensington Tallman) who’s headed to a hockey camp ahead of high school. Of course, Inside Out 2‘s characters are mainly Riley’s many personified emotions, including de facto leader Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Tony Hale), Disgust (Liza Lapira), and Anger (Lewis Black). But, after Riley’s puberty alarm sounds, Inside Out 2 also introduces new teenage-centric emotions: Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Envy (Ayo Edebiri), Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos), and Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser). But the new emotions aren’t the only new elements in the teenager’s mind.


Friendship Has Replaced Family As Riley’s Biggest Island

Teenage Riley Prioritizes Friends In Inside Out 2


When Anxiety and the other new emotions bottle up Riley’s original feelings, the Joy-led crew goes on another poignant journey through Riley’s mind, leading them to discover some other puberty-related changes. In the world of Inside Out, Riley’s core memories — remembrances that have a more substantial impact on the young girl — work with the emotions in Riley’s mind to shape her decisions. On the outside, these internal goings-on impact Riley’s relationships and sense of self. One of the best parts of the Inside Out franchise is the way it makes abstract concepts more accessible.

Since Riley’s core memories change as she grows, so do the personality islands.


While Riley’s core memories certainly figure into the movies’ ability to translate tough-to-grasp ideas, so do other manifestations within Riley’s mind, including Riley’s islands of personality. Essentially, the aspects of Riley’s five most-important core memories form floating islands within her mind. As Sadness’ influence grows in the first Inside Out, Riley’s long-held personality islands shut down, crumble, or change to reflect her shifting sense of self. Since Riley’s core memories change as she grows, so do the islands. In Inside Out 2, Friendship Island has replaced Family Island as the most substantial and largest island.

Luca from Luca, Riley from Inside Out 2, and Specter from Onward

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Family Island’s Small Size Reflects Riley’s Parents’ Smaller Role

Riley’s Parents Have Much Less Screentime In Inside Out 2

The fact that Riley’s Friendship Island has grown larger and “more important” than Family Island isn’t necessarily a big surprise. After all, the change aptly reflects the way many teenagers feel as they grow more independent and invested in their friendships. Although the teen’s parents were solid supporting characters in the first film, Riley’s mom (Diane Lane) and dad (Kyle MacLachlan) are barely in Inside Out 2. Although the Anderson parents’ absences are more story-driven than Riley not wanting them around, Inside Out 2‘s attention to detail is a key part of its success.

Inside Out 2 is now playing in theaters nationwide.




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