Pete Docter, Pixar's big creative chief, announced several new upcoming movies from the Disney-based animation studio at the company's big investor day on Thursday. Chief among them was Lightyear, which will find Chris Evans voicing the space hero whose adventures spawned the Buzz Lightyear toy of Toy Story and beyond.
Quite what Lightyear will be about beyond the main character is a mystery for now, but expect adventures with Star Command. The film is aiming for a June 2022 release.
Luca, which has already been unveiled by the company, will be with us next summer. Set in a beautiful seaside town on the Italian Riviera, it is a coming-of-age story about one young boy experiencing an unforgettable summer filled with gelato, pasta and endless scooter rides. Luca shares these adventures with his newfound best friend, but all the fun is threatened by a deeply-held secret: there are sea monsters from another world just below the water’s surface.
Turning Red, meanwhile, will be out in 2022. It introduces Mei Lee, a confident, dorky 13-year-old torn between staying her mother’s dutiful daughter and the chaos of adolescence. And as if changes to her interests, relationships and body weren’t enough, whenever she gets too excited, she “poofs” into a giant red panda. The film comes from Bao Oscar winner Domee Shi and is produced by Lindsey Collins.
Team Pixar will also be expanding their work on Disney+, adding to the likes of Spark Shorts and Forky Asks A Question. A new Cars series is on the way, alongside long-form animated series Win Or Lose. The latter follows a coed middle school softball team in the week leading up to their championship game. Each 20-minute episode highlights the perspective of a different character and explores the drama of bad calls made on and off the field. It's written and directed by story artists Carrie Hobson and Michael Yates. New short Burrow, meanwhile, will arrive with Soul on Christmas Day, and finds a young rabbit trying to craft her dream home. It's directed by Madeline Sharafian and produced by Mike Capbarat.
Dug Days, spun-off from Docter's Up, is a set of shorts following everyone's favourite talking pooch. Written and directed by Dug's voice human Bob Peterson, it'll be a fun series of adventures.
Pixar Popcorn will be even shorter short films, bite-sized stories featuring existing (and some new) characters from the studio's stable.