Summary

• The sequel to Inside Out, Inside Out 2, will bring back Amy Poehler as Joy among a star-studded cast.
• Elio, a sci-fi adventure film, directed by Adrian Molina, follows an 11-year-old boy's intergalactic journey.
• Toy Story 5 is confirmed to be in development to continue Woody and Buzz's story.

With nearly 30 years of feature filmmaking, the upcoming Pixar movies prove that the animation studio shows no signs of slowing down. Back in 1995, Pixar completely revolutionized animation in Hollywood with the release of Toy Story, the industry's first computer-animated feature film. Its success helped propel Pixar to becoming one of Hollywood's most acclaimed animation studios, leading all the way up to their latest batch of movies hitting both theaters and, in some cases, exclusively on Disney+ streaming.

It has been an interesting few years for Pixar. With the pandemic making theatrical releases questionable and the rise of streaming services, several of their releases have forgone the theatrical route and debuted directly on Disney+. Meanwhile, the box office failure of Lightyear proved that viewers weren't always going to be on board with Pixar, even with its most recognizable properties. Recent Pixar movies have been a mixed bag, but the studio looks to recapture its former acclaim and box office success with a string of upcoming Pixar movies that balance a return of popular franchise and original ideas.

June 14, 2024 - Inside Out 2

A Sequel To The 2015 Pixar Film Inside Out

Of the upcoming Pixar movies, the sequel to 2015's Inside Out is probably the one that generates the most excitement. Inside Out is regarded by many as one of Pixar's high points. The central premise of the movie surrounds "feelings with feelings," and there's no doubt that Pixar will have everyone feeling their own feelings considering Trent Reznor's beautiful score and the first movie's bittersweet message.

Inside Out earned $858.8 million at the box office, making it one of Pixar's highest-grossing films.

Inside Out 2's cast will see the return of Amy Poehler as Joy, Phyllis Smith as Sadness, and Lewis Black as Anger, but Bill Hader and Mindy Kaling won't be reprising their respective roles of Fear and Disgust. Instead, Tony Hale and Liza Lapira will be stepping in as Fear and Disgust, respectively. Inside Out 2's story revolves around Riley becoming a teenager. Consequently, many new emotions, like Anxiety, Envy, Ennui, and Embarrassment, will join the original five at headquarters, causing significant tension between the veterans and the newbies.

Inside Out director Pete Docter has been replaced by Kelsey Mann for Inside Out 2, with Meg LeFauve back on scripting duties (after co-writing the first installment) alongside Dave Holstein and Jon Zack. Inside Out was a box-office hit, and along with having the distinction of being the most successful standalone Pixar movie, it is also considered one of the best Pixar movies by most. Given all its success and accolades, it is not surprising that a sequel is happening.

All upcoming Pixar movies are made possible by Toy Story kicking things off in 1995.

In fact, it is only surprising that an Inside Out sequel has taken this long, with the original movie released almost ten years ago. Nevertheless, Inside Out 2 will premiere on June 14, 2024, bringing fans back to the world of Riley and her emotions. Additionally, Docter previously explained that the Inside Out sequel would provide the comfort food and familiarity that fans want from their movies, but would also push the limits of what they can do. He told Variety:

"We want to push the limits as far as we can ... As for Inside Out [2], a bunch more emotions get to come in. It's not just the five we saw in the first film. The team on that one put together a really great story that I think also has real depth and meaning to it. So fingers crossed that people like it."

June 13, 2025 - Elio

A Science Fiction Adventure Film Featuring Aliens

In terms of other upcoming Pixar movies, Elio's story is an original concept and looks to be a lavish, visually stunning sci-fi adventure. The 2025 science fiction adventure film revolves around an 11-year-old boy, Elio, who is mistaken for Earth's ambassador after being transported across the universe. With Coco director Adrian Molina at the helm, Elio will undoubtedly pull on the heartstrings while showing how a kid handles a truly fish-out-of-water situation. Yonas Kibreab voices the lead character, and the role of his mother will be voiced by Barbie's America Ferrera.

Pixar has tried sci-fi storytelling before with Lightyear and WALL-E, and although the reactions to Lightyear were mixed, WALL-E was extremely well received as some rank it among the top Pixar films. However, Elio sounds like a fun and original idea. The movie is slated for a June 13, 2025, release date, so fans will have to wait almost a year after the release of Inside Out 2 to watch the next film (given that the upcoming sci-fi film isn't delayed again).

June 19, 2026 - Toy Story 5

The Fifth Installment Of The Toy Story Film Series