Anyone who’s seen Toy Story 3, 2010’s presumed closing chapter to Pixar’s beloved Toy Story franchise, will remember its tearjerker of an ending. But if, like me, you thought the finality of those last moments suggested that after 15 years the Toy Story series had come to a conclusion, think again: Today, Walt Disney CEO Robert Iger announced that Pixar chief John Lasseter will direct Toy Story 4, slated for 2017. (Lasseter also directed Toy Story and Toy Story 2 and he was an executive producer on Toy Story 3.) Rashida Jones and Will McCormack, who wrote Celeste and Jesse Forever together, will co-write the script.
Iger didn’t say whether or not Tom Hanks or Tim Allen would be back to voice Woody and Buzz Lightyear, respectively—but, in a press release, they did describe the upcoming movie as “a new chapter in the lives of Woody, Buzz Lightyear and the Toy Story gang.”* At the end of Toy Story 3—spoiler alert!—we saw the toys’ owner Andy hand them down to a little girl, Bonnie, before he left for college. What happened after that is pretty much up in the air (even if they have turned up in the occasional Disney short).
So we’ll just have to wait to find out what they’re up to. The film is scheduled to open on June 16, 2017.
And, who knows, maybe we’ll find out once and for all what’s really the deal with Andy’s mom.
Previously
Toy Story Goes Dubstep in a New Short
The Secret Identity of Andy’s Mom in Toy Story
* Update, 7:05 p.m.: This post has been updated to include details from Disney’s press release.
