After a number of stops and starts, it appears Disney and Pixar are holding fast to a 2019 release date forToy Story 4. The sequel was first announced back in 2014, withJohn Lasseterdirecting andRashida JonesandWill McCormackwriting the screenplay based on an original story from Lasseter and Pixar mainstaysAndrew Stanton,Pete Docter, andLee Unkrich—the creators of theToy Storyfranchise in the first place. At that time, Disney staked out a June 2017 release date for the project, and while fans were skeptical, this was the studio that completely reworkedToy Story 2in record time and gave us one of the most emotional sequels ever withToy Story 3. If anyone could make a great fourth film in a series, it was Pixar.
But there were rocky roads ahead. In October 2015,Toy Story 4was pushed back to 2018 as work was still being done on the script. Then a year later, the film was pushed back yet another year asIncredibles 2’s development was going much more smoothly so the two swapped release dates. Then in July 2017, Lasseter stepped down from the director’s chair, promoting co-directorJosh Cooleyto director and settingCococo-directorJonas Riveraas the film’s new co-director.
And then,amid reports of sexual harassment from Lasseter, it was revealed that original writers Jones and McCormack had withdrawn from the project some time earlier, with Jones stating that Pixar felt like “a culture where women and people of color do not have an equal voice.”
So that brings us up to date, withStephany Folsom(Thor: Ragnarok) subsequently coming onboard to pen the screenplay. Now it appears that things are going much more smoothly, asCooley confirmed on Twitterthat theToy Story 4release date will indeed be July 18, 2025. About a year and a half out, it appears the team is confident in their ability to hit that date, and so fans can now hopefully look forward to seeing what this sequel’s all about next year.
