Pixar’s next installment in the “Toy Story” series is taking shape: At the D23 Expo in Anaheim on Friday, it was officially announced that “Finding Nemo” director Andrew Stanton will write the screenplay and co-direct the upcoming project, which will be released in 2026.
Stanton will co-direct with McKenna Jean Harris, who directed the Disney+-based animated short “Ciao Alberto.”
Stanton says that in the new film, Woody and the gang will see their mission as making kids happy by taking on their biggest challenge yet: electronics. The crowd laughed at a concept image in which all the toys look sadly at a child staring at a tablet under the covers.
Stanton also revealed that there will be an army of computer-controlled Buzz Lightyear toys that will make life difficult for everyone.
Stanton is one of Pixar’s founding fathers and has written or co-written all five “Toy Story” films. “Toy Story 5” will be his fifth Pixar film as director, alongside “A Bug’s Life,” “Finding Nemo,” its sequel “Finding Dory” and “WALL-E.”
Outside of Pixar, Stanton is directing the live-action sci-fi drama “In the Blink of an Eye,” starring Kate McKinnon, Rashida Jones and Daveed Diggs. The film is being produced by Searchlight Pictures and will be released on Hulu.
