15 of the most memorable and lovable Pixar side characters ranked

Who do you think is the best Pixar side character ever? Check out our rankings for the top 15 and see if your favorite made the list.

When it comes to animated movies, Pixar is king. With their adorable hopping lamp mascot and ability to make us cry over literally anything. (Toys? Dinosaurs? Bugs?) Pixar has effectively ingrained themselves into all our childhoods and given us some of our most tender cinematic experiences. In a world of all-too-frequent animated movie flops, Pixar reliably comes through for us every time.

So what’s their secret? Let’s be honest, there are a lot of things that make Pixar movies work. Their stories are always unique (an underground family of superheroes, anyone?); the animation is beautiful (just look at Merida’s hair in Brave); the soundtracks are memorable (think “You’ve Got a Friend in Me”). And the feels levels are always a little intense (remember that time Buzz learned he couldn’t actually fly?)

But the real power of Pixar is in something else entirely: their characters.

Yup, the characters, not the people, because more often than not, Pixar characters are definitely not human. And yet, the cars, action figures, and monsters of Pixar are frequently more lovable than most human characters. And the real power of Pixar characters is that they make everyone a star. Just think about it, Cars may be about Lightning McQueen, but every automobile in Radiator Springs is lovable in their own way. Pixar gives attention to every character in the story, no matter if they’re the lead or not. And frequently, it’s all those colorful side characters who make the film.

In fact, some of those side characters are such great screen-stealers that they deserve their own film. And we’re not talking side characters who basically are lead characters who got their own films, like Dory and Mater. We’re talking those other side characters whose handful of lines are some of the film’s best.

So here you have it: The top 15 Pixar side characters, who stole the screen, and our hearts.