Inside Out 2, the screenwriter explains why Shame and Guilt are not part of the sequel

So many emotions accompany us every day, but the sequel to Inside Out had to select the most important and functional ones for the new chapter of Riley’s life. In full pre-adolescent phase, the protagonist is grappling with a new mix of emotions that will end up taking over starting from Anxietywhich comes into play creating havoc together with Embarrassment, Boredom ed Envy. Accepting new entries is not easy for Fear, Disgust, Anger, Sadness e Gioia, but you have to come together and accept every single emotion. A long journey of acceptance in and out for Riley and one that would have further complicated the picture if she had added more emotions cut out of the sequel. There Screenwriter Meg LeFauve confirmed that they had initially also considered Shame e Sense of Guilt, but they didn’t get past the final assembly stage.

Inside Out 2, the screenwriter explains why Shame and Guilt didn’t reach the other emotions in the sequel

Riley is going through a series of major changes in Inside Out 2, which will also have a strong impact on the headquarters where Joy & Company will have to welcome a new group of emotions led by Anxiety. Initially, however, screenwriter Meg LeFauve and her team had also considered other emotions to add to the sequel. Among these, the most likely were Shame and Guilt. Speaking to the microphones of ComicBooktold more:

We had a fisherman of ideas named Gail, and we went to the Fact and Opinion factory and saw how they were made. And it was super fun. I think in terms of emotion, we really tried for quite some time to bring shame and guilt into the film. Shame is more self-criticism, that thing that sticks with you. We talked about it with many experts. The difference with shame is that it’s not really a good thing for you because it’s just attacking yourself. While Guilt is about taking responsibility and is a behavior, not who you are.

But why didn’t they reach the screen? The director already answered this question some time ago, but the screenwriter also supported the reasoning, specifying that yes, they were there too many emotions at play and it wouldn’t have worked to mix so much of it, especially since the aim was to focus specifically on Anxiety.

But it never really worked out. And for this version, because we really needed to focus on Anxiety, the plot started to branch off too much. But I think we all have that inner critic in our heads, and we were able to explore that a little bit through the screenings and a little bit through how Anxiety can start to have that effect. So, I think that’s in the movie but it was something we explored and ultimately didn’t feel was useful for this version.