Part 6/16:
The breakthrough came in 1995 with Toy Story, the world’s first fully 3D animated feature. Its critical and commercial success cemented Pixar’s reputation as the future of animation, and Disney’s reliance on Pixar increased. However, tensions soon escalated when Disney’s own animation efforts flopped with films like Atlantis and Treasure Planet. Eisner, confident in Disney’s legacy, believed it could build a rival to Pixar internally—an ambition that ultimately failed. By 2004, Pixar’s contract was up, and Steve Jobs openly criticized Disney, leading to a bitter feud.