Bad news, Pixar fans: according to Disney chief Bob Iger (as reported by the good folks at Coming Soon) Cars 2 has been pushed back from June 2011 to December of the same year. And that's likely to have a knock-on effect on The Bear and The Bow, which had been scheduled for that December as well.
Now admittedly Cars is generally seen as a lesser Pixar movie, but it's been one of the most successful financially for the studio thanks to endless sales of tie-in merchandise. And given Pixar's fanatical devotion to self-improvement, they're likely to try to improve the second film. Does this delay signal that that's in trouble? Somehow, we doubt it: this is one studio that has consistently shown itself willing to delay a release, or work around the clock to reformulate a film before release, if it isn't happy with the finished product.
The sequel is due to see Owen Wilson's Lightning McQueen and Larry the Cable Guy's Mater travel around the world in a series of street races to determine who's the world's fastest, er, car. Expect more gorgeous scenery (heck, the first film looked astonishing) and things going vroom.
Frankly, the major disappointment here is the likely delay of** The Bear and The Bow**, one of the most exciting upcoming films from the studio. We'll bring you more on that as we hear it.