Did You Notice These Homages To 'The Shining' In 'Toy Story'?

Toy Story is one of the most lovable children's films brought to us by Disney Pixar. The original film was so successful that it returned for a second film, then a third and soon to be a fourth.

The character Sid from the first Toy Story film always have a sense of death and darkness. Sid “kidnapped” Buzz and Woody and made them his own toys. It was up to Buzz and Woody to try and escape Sid’s monster house. When Buzz and Woody made the attempt to escape from Sid, they run across the house hallway upstairs and cross a very familiar carpet pattern. You're probably asking where you've seen it before.

The carpet in Sid's house is the same pattern as the one seen in The Shining in the Overlook Hotel. The same carpet where junior psychic Danny Torrance used to always play with his toys. Thankfully, Buzz and Woody escaped the monster house without killing themselves. Well, Buzz lost an arm, but it was mendable.

The Shining horror Easter Eggs continued into Toy Story 3 in 2010. The creepy looking monkey watching the live footage on the daycare nursery surveillance cameras was always up to something. On the same desk the monkey sat on there is a rather small box which has the same pattern of the carpet from Sid's house and the Overlook Hotel on it. Again. Not only that, on that desk is a 1970s intercom modeled after the one which was seen in The Shining on the hotel manager’s office.

Continuing in Toy Story is the biggest The Shining Easter Egg ever made. The number 237 constantly crops up throughout the third film. There's a security camera with the model number OVERLOOK R237. There's a garbage truck with the registration plate RM237. Finally Woody chatting with someone online with the username Velocistar237.

The number 237 is significant because it's a reference to the Overlook Hotel Room 237. This is the room where Jack Nicholson made out with the naked lady who then suddenly turned into a cackling corpse. Well apparently she has rather good Wi-Fi in there and likes chatting with toys to pass the time.

Toy Story director Lee Unkrich is said to be a massive fan of The Shining and personally put all these Easter Eggs in himself. Apart from one: The carpet pattern in the first Toy Story is just a coincidence. Pretty spooky.

For more Toy Story reads, check out this piece about the true identity of Andy's mom — it's a game changer.