Bob Iger promised a return to form for Pixar, and he’s bringing out the big guns for their next massive outing.
During his Rebuild Disney proclamation, Iger noted that he had plans to bring back Toy Story for a fifth entry and now Pixar CCO Pete Docter has confirmed the news by announcing the filmmaker behind Toy Story 5.
While promoting the upcoming Inside Out 2, Docter revealed that Andrew Stanton will reportedly direct the anticipated new film. For those unfamiliar with Stanton, he’s the filmmaker behind Finding Nemo, Finding Dory, and WALL-E, two of which are Academy Award winners. Stanton has also been quite a prolific writer for Disney, penning eight scripts for the studio; he’s already familiar with this franchise since he wrote both Toy Story and Toy Story 2.
Little is known about Toy Story 5. During the press conference, it was teased that the film’s look would be different, with the statement that the “animation is going to evolve.”
It will have to follow Toy Story 4, the 2019 film that grossed $1.073 billion worldwide and became the highest-grossing film in the franchise. Between these films was a spin-off, Lightyear, which was met with a lackluster reception.
Toy Story 5 is scheduled to be released on June 19, 2026. Next up for Pixar will be Inside Out 2, set to be released this coming week [watch the trailer here].