'Toy Story 4' TV Spot Summons Forky From The Netherworld

One thing is clear: Toy Story 4 is going to have a lot more existential dread than the last three films. That's thanks to Forky, the new character that begs the question: just what is it that makes a toy a toy? And we're talking the secretly sentient type of toy here, too. Is every single thing a kid plays with a toy – and if so, does that mean anything a child plays with will come to life? The implications are terrifying. In a new Toy Story 4 TV spot, we get to see the origins of Forky, and they're about as spooky as you might expect.

No amount of whimsical music can make up for the fact that Forky is a creature born of nightmares. Sure, when we see the spork-based figure being created here, it's treated as something sweet and innocent. But then the moment cuts to Woody alone with an inanimate Forky in the dark. One of Forky's googly-eyes suddenly rolls, and he springs to life, screaming. Pleasant dreams!

I have so many questions. Where do the "souls" of the toys come from? Are they floating out there, somewhere in the ether, waiting to be summoned forth like Lovecraftian Elder Gods? Or is this more like a Frankenstein situation, where life is created through some sort of dark science better off left unsaid? Perhaps Toy Story 4 will answer these questions. Perhaps not. All I know is that I'm terrified. What is your deal, Forky? What dark, terrible secrets have you brought back with you from the outer-rim of consciousness? Would you even tell us if you could? Or would telling us drive us mad – turning our hair stark white, withering our skin, and casting a milky haze over our eyes in the process. Perhaps there are mysteries better left unsolved; questions left unanswered. Perhaps we'll only know the truth when we're drawing our final breath on our death beds, and the darkness is closing in.

Anyway, Toy Story 4 opens June 21.

Woody has always been confident about his place in the world and that his priority is taking care of his kid, whether that's Andy or Bonnie. But when Bonnie adds a reluctant new toy called "Forky" to her room, a road trip adventure alongside old and new friends will show Woody how big the world can be for a toy.