As Riley (Kensington Tallman) grows up, new emotions enter her mind. Joy (Amy Poehler) struggles to find her place. While she has grown from Inside Out, this new journey back to headquarters takes a toll on Joy. Joy breaks down in front of Anger, Fear and Disgust when they start complaining. She realises that as people grow up, they feel less Joy. This is a powerful idea in the film, but there's also a beautiful visual after the climax of Inside Out 2.
Riley’s Joy-Filled Skating is a callback to previous 'Inside Out' moments. Joy helps Anxiety (Maya Hawke) let go of Riley, Joy realises she has been acting no better than Anxiety. Earlier in the movie, Joy creates a system that could make Riley forget her bad memories. (You know the saying: out of sight, out of mind). It was an innocent attempt to keep Riley from focusing on her mistakes, but it also made her more complex. That's what maturity does. Joy replaces Riley’s anxious sense of self with a new belief system. Riley’s friends forgive her at hockey camp. She starts to feel happy. Joy is called to Headquarters, where she floods Riley with emotion as she skates with her friends.
