Woody and Buzz Lightyear will be heading to the big screen once again.
Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger announced at a quarterly earnings meeting Thursday that John Lasseter, who helmed Toy Story back in 1995, will return to direct Toy Story 4.
“John created Toy Story and directed the first two films, and it’s great to have him back directing one of our most valuable properties,” Iger said.
The film is slated to hit theaters June 16, 2017. It will be written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack. Finding Nemo director Andrew Stanton, Up and Monsters Inc. director Pete Docter, and Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich developed the storyline for the film.
“We love these characters so much; they are like family to us,” Lasseter said in a statement. “We don’t want to do anything with them unless it lives up to or surpasses what’s gone before. Toy Story 3 ended Woody and Buzz’s story with Andy so perfectly that for a long time, we never even talked about doing another Toy Story movie. But when Andrew, Pete, Lee and I came up with this new idea, I just could not stop thinking about it. It was so exciting to me, I knew we had to make this movie — and I wanted to direct it myself.”
Toy Story’s first three films have earned $1.94 billion worldwide. 2010’s Toy Story 3 was a huge success, grossing $1.1 billion worldwide and winning two Oscars.
