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For decades, Pixar was a studio synonymous with top quality, and even Walt Disney Animation Studios spent years trying to produce originals that were comparable to the best Pixar movies. While the global pandemic was perhaps even less kind to the Toy Story studio than anybody else, it now looks poised to come back in a big way, with several major new releases planned over the next several years, and more expected to be announced in time.
Animated movies take a long time to put together, of course, and can go through significant changes such as complete story overhauls during the course of production. As such, release dates may change significantly, and entire movies can sometimes be scrapped after their premiere dates are announced. For now, however, let’s look at the currently confirmed recent and upcoming releases from Pixar Animation Studios
Lightyear
The first Pixar movie released in theaters following the global pandemic was not the return to form that Pixar was probably expecting. The movie, which took the Buzz Lightyear character from the Toy Story franchise and imagined what the in-universe movie that inspired the toy might have been like, was the worst-performing Pixar movie at the box office to date of those that weren’t hampered by cinemas closing.
Lightyear saw Buzz Lightyear as a Space Ranger whose transport full of people was stranded on a hostile alien world. In an attempt to save his people, Buzz ended up traveling in time and fighting a new threat. It was a more dramatic and action-focused Pixar story than we’re used to seeing, but it had its high points as many Lightyear fans are pointing out.
Stream Lightyear now with a Disney+ subscription.
Elemental
Elemental was a very interesting recent release from Pixar, with an original concept setting up a romantic drama, an unusual category for the animation studio. Elemental had a rough box office domestically, but found a dependable audience overseas, and eventually on Disney+. Viewere were ultimately faced with a movie that, while not a massive hit, was not exactly a catastrophic failure either.
Elemental centers on a world inhabited by people made up of the four classic elements, earth, air, fire, and water. It focuses on Ember and Wade, a woman of fire and a man of water, who fall in love and have to navigate a world that’s not designed for a relationship like theirs.
Stream Elemental now with a Disney+ subscription.
Inside Out 2
Pete Docter’s Inside Out is widely considered one of Pixar’s upper echelon movies, so it’s little surprise the studio decided to make a sequel, and that audiences would be so excited to see it. Having said that, I’m not sure anybody was quite prepared for just how much people were excited to see it. Inside Out 2 became the first billion-dollar box office hit of 2024, and it silenced those who wondered if Pixar movies had lost their stature as must-see theatrical movies.
Inside Out 2 sees a teenage Riley facing the onset of puberty, and introduces several new emotions, including Anxiety, Envy, Ennui, and Embarrassment. The story clearly touched a lot of people. The only question remaining now is whether or not we’ll see Inside Out 3.
Elio
Release Date: June 13, 2025
When Pixar releases Elio in the summer of 2025, there are going to be a lot of eyes on it, since the company hasn’t had a massive domestic box office hit with a wholly original concept since 2017’s Coco. Elio was originally slated for a 2024 release before being pushed back a full year, though it’s unclear what the reason for the delay was. We haven’t gotten a trailer for Elio since before that change, so it will be interesting to see if our next look at the film will feature any majorly significant changes.
What we know about Elio now is that it’s named after its main character, an 11-year-old boy who is mistakenly believed to be Earth’s ambassador by an organization comprising multiple alien species. Forced into the task of representing the human race, the boy must bond with multiple alien species while undergoing a series of tests.
Untitled Pixar Movie
Release Date: March 6, 2026
Not every Pixar release that’s on the way is necessarily a movie we know anything about. The schedule of upcoming Disney movies simply lists an Untitled Pixar movie set for release in March 2026. At this point, we have no idea what this movie may be, whether it’s a sequel to an existing franchise or something entirely new.
Disney CCO Pete Docter has discussed the fact that the studio is looking at potentially making sequels to Finding Nemo or possibly Incredibles 3. Still, unless one of these movies has already been in production, it would be highly unlikely any animated feature would be ready for a summer 2026 release date. This could also be a completely original concept, or perhaps a short that will be tacked onto another family-friendly release that weeknd. It’s been indicated previously that several directors at Pixar are working on original projects, so this could be one of those. We may hear more about this one in August at D23.
Toy Story 5
Release Date: June 19, 2026
Pixar began its full-length theatrical release train with the original Toy Story, and despite where the studio has gone since, that beloved franchise has not been far behind. While many fans thought Toy Story reached a natural conclusion with Toy Story 3, Toy Story 4 went on to make $1 billion at the global box office, so there is clearly still interest in these characters, from Forky to Bo Peep to Hamm.
Exactly what Toy Story 5 will be about hasn’t been unveiled just yet. However, it has been confirmed that, despite splitting up at the end of Toy Story 4, Buzz Lightyear and Woody will both be included, so the old friends will get back together somehow. It’s been indicated, though not confirmed, that Andrew Stanton may be directing the new film, despite not having directed a Pixar movie since Finding Dory.
After 2026 the schedule of upcoming Disney movies gets a bit more nebulous, but considering that we have seen a Pixar movie release almost every June over the last decade, we can expect something similar will continue to be the case in the years to come. Some of those movies will surely be sequels to existing successful franchises, while others will be original concepts that could potentially become Pixar’s next big franchise. To infinity’s multiplex, and beyond!