Note: This page is about the Toy Story Incarnation of Ken from Toy Story 3. For the Barbie Movie Incarnation, click here.
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| “ | Twitch: You got a little keeper yourself, didn't you, Ken? Ken: Hey, lay off, Twitch! Barbie's different. Stretch: Aww, Mr. Softy over here. Chunk: What do you expect from a girl's toy? Ken: I'M NOT A GIRL'S TOY! I'M NOT! Why do you guys keep saying that?! |
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| ~ Ken getting taunted by other members of Lotso's gang, who call him a girl's toy due to him falling in love with Barbie. |
Kenneth Sean "Ken" Carson is one of the two secondary antagonists (alongside Big Baby) of Pixar's 11th full-length animated feature film Toy Story 3. He is one of Lotso's former minions (as well as his second-in-command), and Barbie's boyfriend.
He is voiced by Michael Keaton, who also played the title character in Beetlejuice and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Carter Hayes in Pacific Heights, Peter McCabe in Desperate Measures, Trip Larsen in King of the Hill, Chick Hicks in Cars, Walter Nelson Sr. in Minions, Raymond Sellars in the 2014 RoboCop remake, Ray Kroc in The Founder, the Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming and Morbius, and V.A. Vandevere in the live-action Dumbo remake.
Personality[]
Ken is one of the toys from Sunnyside Daycare. He appears to be Lotso's 2nd in command, but is considered a weakling and constantly teased by the other toys. At the same time, he is at first as ruthless and arrogant as his friends as shown when he turns on Barbie after she broke up with him.
Ken loves fashion, dance and bright colors just as much as his girlfriend Barbie. He resents being called a "girl's toy," as a human male might have with their masculinity being put into question. He also rather dislikes attention being drawn to the fact that he's essentially an accessory to Barbie.
Despite his loyalty to Lotso, Ken ends up reforming off-screen and is one of the people who convinces the others to turn against Lotso. This shows that despite his ruthless nature, Ken did not feel comfortable with his employer's message, or ended up reforming because of Barbie's influence. This is proven when he ends up running Sunnyside along with her at the end.
Biography[]
Toy Story 3[]
Ken first appears from his Dream House when Lotso introduces to him about Andy's Toys. He instantly falls in love with a Barbie doll, whom Molly Davis donated. Ken and Lotso then show the toys around Sunnyside before assigning them to the Caterpillar Room. After some hesitation, Ken decides to take Barbie to the Butterfly Room with him so that they could live in his Dream House. The other toys allow Barbie to go with Ken, to which the two excitedly go to the Butterfly Room with Lotso and Big Baby.
Later, when Buzz Lightyear leaves the Caterpillar Room to talk to Lotso, he sees Barbie and Ken having fun as they exchange the word "I love you" (much to his disgust). Before the two dolls could share a kiss, Ken is dragged away by Twitch so that they can do gambling with the other minions in their hideout in a vending machine.
As Ken and the gang gambles, they also insult Andy's toys, though they thought that Buzz would make a good member of their team. The gang then starts teasing Ken's love for Barbie, with Chunk calling him a "girl's toy", much to Ken's anger and annoyance. Buzz, who has followed the gang and eavesdropped on their meeting, tries to go back to warn his friends before he is caught by Big Baby. As Big Baby throws Buzz into the gambling table, Ken commands the gang to take him to the library.
After he is kidnapped and taken to the library, Buzz angrily tells Ken and the other minions to release him and let him talk to Lotso. Ken calls him "Buck Rogers" and tells him he can't to talk to Lotso unless they allow him to, before Lotso comes to the library. When Buzz requests to Lotso to transfer him and his friends to the Butterfly Room, Lotso immediately grants his request. Ken tries to protest, but Lotso condescendingly calls him "Kenneth" and tells him and his other minions that they have a new member to their team. While the other minions are happy, Ken isn't so excited as he clapped but still frowned. Just as Buzz is about to get his friends, however, Lotso tells him that the other toys need to stay in the Caterpillar Room. This makes Buzz refuse Lotso's offer to be a member of his gang, since he is not willing to abandon his friends. Hearing Buzz's refusal, Lotso reveals his true nature as he restrains Buzz back to the timeout chair and tells Ken to call for the Bookworm. Ken whistles for the Bookworm, and, after getting a Buzz Lightyear instruction manual, Lotso, Ken, and the other minions reset Buzz by switching him into Demo mode.
Ken then helps Lotso and the other minions lock Andy's toys up. Barbie, who went out of the Dream House to look for Ken, gets angry with him when she sees him locking up her friends. This causes the two to break up, and Barbie gets locked up as well.
The next night, as Ken and Buzz take roll call, they realize that Mr. Potato Head is out of his cell and is trying to escape. As they argue, Mr. Potato Head insults Ken by calling him "a purse with legs" before he kicks him. Enraged, Ken tells Big Baby to take Mr. Potato Head back to the box. He then tells Buzz to resume his "space-guy thingy", to which Buzz responds as he calls him "Well-groomed man". Just as he is about to leave, Ken hears Barbie calling out for him. Barbie tricks Ken into freeing her from prison by faking her tears and telling him how she wants to be with him in his Dream House. Ken hesitates, but eventually decides to free Barbie, though he tells her that she has to do everything he says. When Barbie promises to do so, Ken frees her and takes her to his Dream House, where he proceeds to show off all his outfits for Barbie. Later, Ken is showing off his kung-fu outfit, before he realizes that Barbie is gone. Barbie ambushes him from behind and demands him to tell her what happened to Buzz and how she can switch him back. Realizing that Barbie tricked him, Ken initially refuses, but he at least decides to let Barbie try.
Barbie ties up Ken (who is left with just his underwear) in a paddleball paddle and tortures him by ripping off his outfits one by one. Ken tries to resist the torture at first, but when he sees Barbie about to rip off his Nehru jacket, he finally ends up revealing to Barbie that Lotso used a Buzz Lightyear instruction manual and switched Buzz to Demo mode.
Ken later appears when Andy's toys are confronted by Lotso and his gang after they escape Sunnyside. He begs Lotso not to push Barbie into the dumpster, to which Lotso tells him that there are a hundred millions of Barbie dolls, only for Ken to protest, saying there's no one like the Barbie he met. Angry, Lotso tells Ken to join Barbie as he throws him towards Andy's toys. After the toys help Ken get up to the chute, Barbie hugs him, happy that he redeemed himself from his evil actions. Ken then gives a speech to the other minions that Sunnyside could be a happy place if they treated each other fair, and that Lotso is the real villain who made them into a pyramid and put himself on top. The minions turn against Lotso after learning about his past and how cruel he really is. After Big Baby throws Lotso into the dumpster, Ken helps Andy's toys escape Sunnyside, but Woody gets caught by Lotso as he is dragged inside the dumpster. Andy's toys proceed to go to the garbage truck to save Woody. Barbie tries to go with them, but is stopped by Ken. The two watch in horror as Andy's toys get loaded into the garbage truck.
During the ending credits, Ken and Barbie became the new leaders of Sunnyside and ran it into a happy place, giving all toys prosperous manners.
Hawaiian Vacation[]
Ken is one of the protagonists (alongside Barbie) of this 2011 short film which was the first Toy Story production set after Toy Story 3. As Bonnie's toys get ready for a week of relaxation, Ken and Barbie unexpectedly reveal themselves as they unzip Bonnie's backpack and step out into the room. Thinking they have landed in Hawaii, they unload their supplies.
As Ken takes a picture of Barbie in "Hawaii," Woody calls to the pair, and Ken is elated to see Woody and the other toys and reveals that the two have stowed away in Bonnie's backpack. Thinking that Bonnie's toys are also in Hawaii, Ken asks them how they have arrived, only for Woody to reveal that Ken and Barbie are in Bonnie's bedroom, making Ken dismayed that the vacation plans for him and Barbie have been disrupted. After realizing he has missed their "flight" to Hawaii, Ken sinks back into Bonnie's backpack in depression.
Later, Barbie calls for Ken to come out, and when Ken opens the backpack, he is greeted by Jessie's enthusiastic "ALOHA!" then finds himself standing in "paradise" with Barbie. Woody and his friends recreate "Hawaii" for the couple, such as deep-sea diving, guided nature walk, and an entertaining dinner. After their various adventures in "Hawaii," Ken and Barbie share their first kiss in the snow at sunrise, as Woody and his friends watch through a window, but then the two fall into a snow, prompting the toys to come to their rescue by digging them out and releasing them from a block of ice.
Quotes[]
| “ | Far out! Down in a jiff, Lotso. So, who's ready for Ken's dream tour? | „ |
| “ | Ken: Hey, what do you guys think of the new recruits? Any keepers? Stretch: Oh, please. Landfill. Ken: Cowgirl? Dinosaur? Twitch: Toddler fodder. Ken: But that, uh, space guy. He could be useful. Chunk: He ain't the sharpest knife in the... uh... place where they keep the knives. Sparks: Neither are you, Chunk! |
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| ~ Ken and the other minions of Lotso talking about Andy's Toys |
| “ | Ken: Well, well. Looky who we have here. Buzz: Let me go! Ken: Take him to the library! Buzz: NO! |
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| ~ Ken and Lotso's minions kidnapping Buzz. |
| “ | Zip it, Buck Rogers. You don't talk to Lotso 'till we say you can... | „ |
| ~ Ken tells Buzz he can't talk to Lotso unless he allows him to. |
| “ | Barbie: Ken? What's going on? Ken: B-Barbie! I told you to wait in the Dream House. Barbie: What are you doing to my friends? Twitch: (throws the Little Green Men) Get in there! (Barbie gets mad at Ken) Ken: Barbie, wait! Barbie: Don't touch me! We're through! Ken: Barbie! I did... (groans) Barbie: (snatches her scarf from Ken's neck) And give me my scarf back! Ken: Ow. |
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| ~ Ken and Barbie break up. |
| “ | Ken: Little late for a stroll, eh, Potato Head? Mr. Potato Head: That's MR. Potato Head to you, smoothie! Ken: Well, well, well. You're turning out to be quite the troublemaker, aren't you? What did you think you were gonna do? Waltz right out of here? Mr. Potato Head: Yeah, and I would've got away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling toys! You ascot-wearing pink-noser! You're not a toy! You're an accessory! You're a purse with legs! (kicks Ken) Ken: OW! Take him back to the box! |
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| ~ Ken vs. Mr. Potato Head. |
| “ | Barbie: No more games, Ken! What did Lotso do to Buzz? And how do we switch him back? Ken: You can't make me talk. You can't!...But I'd like to see you try. |
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| ~ Ken attacked by Barbie. |
| “ | Barbie: Let's see. Hawaiian surf trunks. (rips them off) Ken: Oh, Barbie! Those were vintage! It's okay. All right, go ahead, rip 'em, I don't care. They're a dime a dozen. Barbie: Oooh! Glitter tux! (rips it off) Ken: OH!!! Who cares? Who cares?! Sequins are tacky. Who cares? Barbie: Oooh, a Nehru jacket. Ken: Barbie, not the Nehru! Barbie: This is from what, 1967? Ken: The groovy formal collection, yes! Barbie: What a shame. Ken: Oh, no! No! NO! NO!! NOO!!! THERE'S AN INSTRUCTION MANUAL!! Lotso switched Buzz to Demo mode! |
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| ~ Ken getting tortured by Barbie who tears his outfits in half one by one, before finally being forced to tell Barbie what Lotso did to Buzz |
| “ | Barbie! Wait! Don't do this, Lotso! (Lotso: She's a Barbie doll, Ken! There's a hundred million just like her!) Not to me, there's not. | „ |
| ~ Ken redeeming himself. |
| “ | Everyone, listen! Sunnyside could be cool and groovy if we treated each other fair! It's Lotso! He's made us into a pyramid, and he put himself on top! | „ |
| ~ Ken's speech. |
Trivia[]
- According to Mattel Toy line History, Ken's full name is Kenneth Sean Carson.
- In the movie, Ken wears 21 different outfits.
- Ken is based on a real toy from the Barbie toyline back in in 1988 called Animal Lovin’ Ken.
- When Buzz gets caught spying on Lotso's gang, Ken says "Take him to the liberry!" (a mispronunciation of library), which was an intentional ad-lib by Michael Keaton. Lee Unkrich found it so funny that he kept it in.
- Ken gets offended whenever people call him a girl's toy (also happens in his promo and his interview), similar to Francis from A Bug's Life when he is mistaken for a girl.
- It is likely Ken became a servant of Lotso out of sheer fear of what he could do to him. That said, him being his former second-in-command indicates that he must have been more ruthless at some point.
- This wouldn’t be the only time Ken was portrayed as a villain.
- Ken is the second Pixar villain to be voiced by Michael Keaton after Chick Hicks from the Cars franchise, However, Ken manages to redeem himself in the end, unlike Chick, who still retains his arrogant demeanor as of Cars 3.
External Links[]
- Ken on the Heroes Wiki
- Ken on the Disney Wiki
- Ken on the Pixar Wiki
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 Villains
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Humans Toys In-Universe Fiction In Videogames | ||