Pixar’s next installment of the “Toy Story” series is starting to take shape, as it was officially announced at the D23 Expo in Anaheim on Friday that “Finding Nemo” director Andrew Stanton will write and codirect the upcoming project hitting theaters in 2026.
Stanton will codirect with McKenna Jean Harris, who directed the Disney+ animated short “Ciao Alberto,” based on the film “Luca.”
Stanton says that in the new film, Woody and the gang will find their jobs to make kids happy facing their toughest challenge yet: electronics. The crowd laughed at a concept art of all the toys looking sadly at a kid gazing a tablet from under the bed covers.
Stanton also revealed that there will be an army of Buzz Lightyear toys that are controlled by computers that will make things miserable for everyone.
Stanton is one of the founding fathers of Pixar, having served as writer or cowriter on all five “Toy Story” films. “Toy Story 5” will be his fifth Pixar film as director, joining “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.
