Pixar officially announces their next animated movie Onward, which stars Chris Pratt and Tom Holland, will be released in 2020. The studio’s focus on sequels is winding down after Toy Story 4 and will return them to their roots of generating new inventive worlds, and now we know that Onward will be next up.
Since being bought by Disney in 2006, Pixar’s successful run has only continued. Films such as Monsters Inc., Cars, Finding Nemo, and more have all been turned into franchises, but it has been Pixar’s original concepts that have been their brightest spots. Up, Inside Out, and Coco represent some of the top-tier animated movies that the studio has produced. But, the studio has recently undergone some major changes with John Lasseter leaving Pixar following allegations of misconduct. Pete Docter is taking the reins of Pixar for the foreseeable future and they’ve just confirmed their next film.
Pixar officially announced today their next original animated movie is titled Onward. This is the mysterious project previously announced to be directed by Dan Scanlon (Monsters University). Lending their voices to the cast are Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Octavia Spencer. The film will hit theaters on March 6, 2020 and the plot focuses on “two teenage elf brothers who embark on an extraordinary quest to discover if there is still a little magic left out there.” Pratt and Holland will voice the brothers.
Since Disney loves to continue using actors they’re familiar with, the castings of Pratt and Holland make a lot of sense, as both are stars of major MCU franchises. Pratt plays Star-Lord and leads the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, while Holland plays Peter Parker in the Spider-Man franchise that Disney and Marvel are working on with Sony. Pratt and Holland also have experience voicing animated characters already, with Pratt leading The LEGO Movie and Holland’s upcoming roles in Spies in Disguise and Voyage of Doctor Dolittle, and just starred together in Avengers: Infinity War.
Additionally, this will make for Louis-Dreyfus’ return to Pixar after she voiced Atta in A Bug’s Life. She’s currently wrapping up her HBO series Veep. Spencer also has an in with Disney already through her role in Zootopia, but she also recently had a strong run of roles in Instant Family, The Shape of Water, and Hidden Figures. Their roles have not yet been revealed for Onward, but the fantasy landscape at its core make the possibilities endless.
Even though these are the only four stars announced so far, more cast members should be revealed as we near Onward’s release date. We’re still probably quite a few months away at this point from getting a trailer, but Disney could conceivably release one next summer to attach to Toy Story 4.
MORE: 5 Confirmed Pixar Movies In Development (And 10 Rumored)
Source: Pixar
